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David Tully Jul 28th 2026
Arsenal transfer target Vinicius Jr won’t be leaving Real Madrid on a free transfer next summer, according to AS editor-in-chief Tomas Roncero.
Speaking on Cadena SER‘s radio programme El Larguero (quotes translated by Metro), Roncero said that the Brazilian wants to ensure that Real get a transfer fee if he departs the Bernabeu:
“In recent weeks, he’s been saying to those around him that he doesn’t want to leave without Real Madrid receiving a single euro: “I can’t leave Madrid for free because Madrid took me in when I was 18, from a humble family, with a difficult social and personal situation, and they believed in me.”
“They paid €45m euros when it was just a gamble, a promise, nothing more. ‘Madrid has given me everything; I can’t leave without leaving a single euro in the bank’, I’m saying what he’s telling his friends.”
Why this is good news for Arsenal
This development actually increases the chances of Vinicius moving to the Emirates before the transfer window closes.
In normal circumstances, if a player can’t agree a new contract with his current club, they usually prefer to see out the remaining months on the deal before having a pick of teams to join on a free transfer.
If Vinicius has made it clear that he won’t do that, it leaves only two possible scenarios. 1) he signs a new deal with Real, and 2) he leaves this summer with Arsenal at the front of the queue.
Real will demand a sizeable fee
Despite the fact that Vinicius is in the final twelve months of his contract, reports in Spain suggest that President Florentino Perez won’t allow the winger to leave on the cheap.
At the moment, it is believed Perez is holding out for €160m or £137m. That figure would not only smash Arsenal’s transfer record but also the British transfer record.
David Tully
David Tully
David has worked as a football reporter for the last fifteen years. Having started as an intern at Snack Media, he then went on to become a freelancer, working on various different sites. At the start of 2023, he took up his current role as content writer for the Football News Network.