In the summer of 2019 Real Madrid paid €100m (£85m) for Eden Hazard, a disastrous piece of business that would end up costing them closer to €150m (£128m). They have not had a misstep in the transfer market since then.
They beat Manchester City with a mix of homegrowns, free-transfers, clever acquisitions and only one ‘Galatico style’ signing, that of Jude Bellingham.
They have sat back and watched other clubs waste money, while the wave of teenagers they signed on the advice of super scout Juni Calafat have matured in the company of players like Antonio Rudiger who arrived on a free in 2022 and scored the winning penalty last night.