Four players Real Madrid need to sell this Summer

Several Champions League winners do not fit into Xabi Alonso’s new-look Real Madrid.

As Real Madrid embark on a new era led by Xabi Alonso, the club will look to offload several players who are no longer needed moving forward.

By Real Madrid’s high standards, the 2024–25 season was a monumental failure.

The club did not win a major trophy, conceded 84 goals and lost four Clásicos.

Many of the team’s problems stemmed from an unbalanced squad that featured aging, injury-prone players.

Los Blancos have made it a priority this summer, then, to sign young, exciting talents in Dean Huijsen, Franco Mastantuono and Álvaro Carreras, as well as a proven winner in Trent Alexander-Arnold.

The Spanish giants also bid farewell to Luka Modrić and Lucas Vázquez.

There could still be more departures on the way, though, if Real Madrid want to continue building a team capable of winning for years to come.

Here’s four players Real Madrid need to sell ahead of the 2025–26 season.

Endrick had a debut season to forget. The 18-year-old spent more time on the bench than on the pitch, struggling to make consistent appearances outside of brief cameos in the dying moments of a match.

Still, the Brazilian showed glimpses of magic in Carlo Ancelotti’s final campaign in charge, especially in the Copa del Rey where he bagged five goals in six matches.

Endrick missed the FIFA Club World Cup due to injury, though, leading to the emergence of Gonzalo García, who is poised to become Los Blancos’ backup striker after taking home the competition’s Golden Boot.

While it is unlikely the club will sell Endrick, Real Madrid are reportedly open to sending the teenager out on loan for the 2025–26 season.

Instead of sitting on the bench as Alonso’s third preferred striker, Endrick could gain experience playing regular minutes for another club to improve his overall game.

Dani Ceballos is one of the few remaining players on Real Madrid that was part of the 2018 Champions League-winning squad.

The midfielder went on to top Europe two more times in a white shirt, but he rarely featured as a first-choice starter for Los Blancos.

Although he has proven himself as a solid back-up option and a trustworthy substitute, Ceballos is no longer needed at Real Madrid.

The club has a long list of young, star-studded midfielders that includes Fede Valverde, Jude Bellingham, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga and Arda Güler.

Realistically, the Spaniard is never going to beat out any of the aforementioned players for minutes under Alonso. 

In the new manager’s first six matches in charge, Ceballos only played 70 total minutes at the Club World Cup.

The best option for the club moving forward to fetch a decent fee for the former Arsenal man and make room in Alonso’s squad to potentially welcome a blockbuster signing; Real Madrid have been linked with Rodri, who is out of contract with Manchester City next summer.

Ferland Mendy is coming off another campaign marred by injury.

The 30-year-old missed 23 games last season and wound up appearing in less than half of Madrid’s 68 games in their action-packed 2024–25 schedule.

In fact, since joining Real Madrid in 2019, Mendy has only made more than 35 appearances in a single campaign twice.

Year after year, the Frenchman is spending months in the infirmary, leaving his team without its starting left back.

Mendy’s injury history prompted Real Madrid to buy Fran García in 2023 and Carreras this summer.

The club now has three left backs in the dressing room, and recent reports indicate Mendy is the likeliest option to go as Alonso looks to build a squad for the future.

Of all the players on Real Madrid, David Alaba is the one the club needs to sell the most.

The Austrian is a far cry from the player who started nearly every match for Los Blancos when he first arrived ahead of the 2021–22 season.

Now, Alaba is more likely to be found in the infirmary or on the bench for Real Madrid.

The center back suffered an ACL injury in Dec. 2023 and did not return to the pitch until Jan. 2025.

Even after the long-awaited recovery, Alaba never quite regained full match fitness and even suffered new issues that kept him sidelined for long spells to close out the 2024–25 campaign.

The 33-year-old also earns a staggering €22.5 million ($26.1 million) per year in wages despite making just 31 total appearances in the last two seasons.

The high salary combined with his lack of form makes it an easy decision for the club to part ways with Alaba, but they must first find an interested buyer.