Real Madrid are planning to strengthen their defence at the end of the ongoing season and there have been reports that Los Blancos have officially registered an interest in Palmeiras’ Vitor Reis.
Nacho’s exit in the summer has really limited Carlo Ancelotti’s central defensive options and to make matters worse, David Alaba is yet to recover from his long-term ACL injury. The LaLiga giants will definitely go after a top-rated central defender but they are also planning to bring in a young centre-back, possibly as an alternative to Leny Yoro.
However, getting their hands on Vitor Reis will be easier said than done because apart from Real Madrid, Barcelona, Chelsea and Arsenal have also been linked with the 18-year-old in recent months. Vitor Reis might be valued at only €10 million but the way things are shaping up, Palmeiras are set to make a massive profit next year.
Who is Vitor Reis and is he good enough to play for a major European club?
Vitor Reis has come up through the ranks at Palmeiras and the youngster has been a regular feature for the senior side since January of 2024.
This season, the centre-back has featured in 11 Serie A games for the Brazilian side and as per Fotmob, he has a rating of 7 out of 10.
The right-footed centre-back has been widely regarded as the future of Brazilian defence and he is a proper no-nonsense defender. He is not great at making tackles however, Vitor Reis is very strong in the air and he is also very good at making close-range passes.
It is very hard to accurately dissect his talents from just 827 minutes of league football but he is definitely one for the future. There have also been reports in Brazil claiming that Vitor Reis might be a bigger prospect than Endrick.
He still has four years remaining on his contract and negotiating a deal will not be easy because Vitor has a €100 million release clause in his contract. The fact that the 18-year-old has such an absurd exit clause goes to show how highly Palmeiras rate him.
The €100 million clause is just to keep all the suitors at bay and we think the Brazilian side will allow him to leave for around €45-50 million. Barcelona and Real Madrid have this habit of making gamble signings from South America but Chelsea and Arsenal will think long and hard before paying €50 million for someone like Vitor Reis.
Even if the Premier League sides are willing to pay such a steep price for the centre-back, generally, young South American prodigies prefer to move to Spain so at this point Barcelona and Real Madrid look to be the favourites.