Auction Sparks Over Real Madrid's Chase for the English Pirlo
4 January 2026
Madrid's Next Midfield Target
\nReal Madrid are reportedly eyeing Adam Warton, the English midfielder from Crystal Palace, as a potential summer arrival.
\nBritish reports say Madrid are pursuing him for the end of the season if Palace fail to renew his contract.
\nAccording to AS, Madrid isn't prioritizing the move, but the player has been pitched to the club by his agents, and management is not ready to press ahead just yet.
\nThe Case for Warton
\nMadrid rarely raids the English market, but they need a player of Warton's profile to serve as a potential replacement for Aur e9lien Tchouam e9ni or as a complementary piece that could, for example, free Arda Guler to link with Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe.
\nPalace believes a bidding war is looming, with the price likely starting above €65m, and the club won't part with him for less.
\nNext summer could see competition from Manchester City, Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea.
\nWarton isn't a pure No. 10 but a midfielder who blends ball-winning with progressive build-up and is tactically disciplined. His influence comes from intelligence and organization, even if he has not yet reached full maturity.
\nHis growth over the last 18 months supports that maturity, with data suggesting he sits among the Premier League's top five midfielders alongside Martin Zubimendi, Moises Caicedo, Rodri and Casemiro.
\nDefensively, he excels, with fewer fouls and strong ball-winning, and he shines in progressive passing.
\nThe left-footed midfielder has drawn comparisons to Pirlo for his ability to slice through lines with direct, vertical passes.
\nData also show Warton's passing quality; he leads the Premier League in passes between the lines, averaging 3.77 per 90 minutes, and in March 2025, after a three-month injury layoff, he became the youngest player since 2004 to create six goal-scoring chances in a single match.
\nPUNCHLINE 1: If Madrid seals the deal, they might need a bigger trophy room—the current shelves are already full of titles and match reports.
\nPUNCHLINE 2: They call him the English Pirlo, but let 's hope he can bend it like Beckham in the press conference and not just in the training ground.
