In Spain, cantera — youth system — immediately means La Masia, the Barcelona academy that has shaped the club’s European identity over the last thirty years, producing figures like Piqué, Puyol, Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, Pedri, Lamine Yamal and, of course, Messi, brought in from Argentina at 13. Yet the Fábrica, Real Madrid’s own academy, often sits in the background. A system that, in volume of talent and financial return, has been even more productive than the Catalan one.
Beyond those who made it into the first team — Raúl to Casillas, more recently Carvajal, Lucas Vázquez, Nacho, Fran García — there is a wider circulation of players who become market assets, moved on for significant fees, revenue generated on the way out. The latest case is Víctor Muñoz, a player who passed through Valdebebas (after early steps at Barcelona and Damm, another Catalan club) before moving to Osasuna, now attracting attention across Europe.
The forward looked set for Newcastle, a move tied to Anthony Gordon’s departure to Barcelona, before Liverpool entered and moved to trigger the release clause in his Osasuna contract: 40 million euros.
Real Madrid’s position sits underneath. A long-standing structure under Florentino Pérez, the club still holds 50% of the player’s rights and would receive 20 million euros from the deal.
There is more. A buy-back option, exercisable after the first season, as in previous cases such as Nico Paz. A mechanism allowing a return for a fixed fee of eight million euros. Even in the event of a move to a third club, as reported by Mundo Deportivo, the structure appears to hold. A right of first refusal existed on any offer, though Madrid chose not to activate it, keeping the buy-back and the financial return intact.
The deal, now close, could be completed shortly. Reports suggest Muñoz has already undergone medical tests with Liverpool, during a day off with the Spanish national team — at the World Cup.
If completed, the operation would generate around 25 million euros for Real Madrid across the player’s trajectory: 20 million from the Liverpool transfer, plus five already received from his move to Osasuna in 2025 from Castilla, the club’s B team.
Barcelona had also shown interest, though reluctant to “give” 20 million to Real Madrid for a player who had come through La Masia. Muñoz, after all, began his development in Barcelona’s academy before moving across. That detail sits inside the wider tension. The idea of paying a rival for a former youth player. Gordon was targeted instead, and the English market opened again around Muñoz.