Como looks toward Real Madrid: Carvajal as a leader, Gonzalo García and César Palacios as investments for the future
Como 1907 is considering further strengthening its squad with players from Real Madrid, and Dani Carvajal, Gonzalo García and César Palacios are at the center of the latest transfer speculation. According to a Goal.com report published on June 12, 2026, the club led by Cesc Fàbregas is exploring the possibility of signing the experienced right-back Carvajal, while at the same time monitoring younger options from the Madrid system, primarily forward Gonzalo García and midfielder César Palacios. No deal has been concluded for now, and the available information indicates that this is a matter of interest and initial market assessments rather than completed transfers. Still, the choice of names shows the direction in which Como wants to build its squad: through a combination of players with great experience at the highest level and footballers from Real’s academy who could get more room for development in Italy.
The interest in Real Madrid players comes at a moment when Como is trying to confirm its rapid sporting rise. According to the official table published on Como’s website, the team finished the 2025/26 Serie A season among the leading clubs in the league, and Football Italia reported that fourth place secured qualification for the Champions League. Such a leap changes the criteria in the transfer window: the team is no longer looking only for players who can maintain stability in the Italian league, but also for the profile of footballers ready for the rhythm of matches against the strongest European clubs. That is precisely why Carvajal’s name stands out especially in the Italian context, because his potential arrival would bring experience that cannot easily be found on the market. On the other hand, young players such as Gonzalo García and Palacios fit into a model in which Como is trying to develop talents through clearly defined roles and greater playing time.
Carvajal is looking for the next step after Real Madrid
The biggest name among the mentioned options is certainly Dani Carvajal, Real Madrid’s long-serving right-back and one of the most decorated players of his generation. In an official statement dated May 18, 2026, Real Madrid announced that the club and Carvajal had agreed to end his spell in Madrid at the end of the season. In the same announcement, the Madrid club stated that Carvajal joined Real in 2002, that he spent a total of 23 seasons in the club’s system, 13 of them in the first team, and that he won 27 trophies with the senior side. According to Real Madrid, those titles include six European Cups, or Champions League titles, six Club World Cup titles, five UEFA Super Cups, four Spanish league titles, two Copa del Rey trophies and four Spanish Super Cups. The club also announced that Carvajal played 450 matches for Real and scored 14 goals.
Such a résumé explains why Como, if it decides to make a concrete offer, could see more in Carvajal than a solution for one position. The experienced defender would bring knowledge from dressing rooms that regularly played in the final stages of the Champions League, the habit of competing under pressure and an authority that is important for a team just entering the European rhythm. According to Real’s statement, Carvajal won the 2024 European Championship and the 2023 Nations League with the Spain national team, which further broadens his competitive profile beyond the club level. For Como, such an arrival would be an ambitious move, but also a sportingly logical one if Fàbregas wants to have a player in the dressing room who has gone through almost every level of top football. At the moment, however, there is no official confirmation that Carvajal has chosen a new club, so Como’s interest must be viewed as part of an open market process.
Carvajal’s possible arrival would also have symbolic value. In recent seasons, Como has built the image of a club that can attract well-known names, but with Fàbregas’s coaching project the sporting logic of such moves is becoming increasingly pronounced. For a player leaving Real Madrid after spending almost his entire career in that system, a move to a club that plays in the Champions League but does not carry the burden of constantly winning European trophies could represent a different challenge. In such a scenario, Carvajal would not only be a reinforcement at right-back, but also a mentor to younger players, especially those coming from the Spanish football environment. Still, financial conditions, physical condition, sporting ambitions and competition from other clubs remain open questions.
Gonzalo García as an attacking option with proven output
Gonzalo García is the second name most often linked with a possible continuation of cooperation between Como and Real Madrid. La Gazzetta dello Sport reported that Como’s interest in Real’s forward continues and that a market channel focused on players from La Fábrica, as Real’s academy is called, is developing on the Como - Madrid route. According to the same source, the model includes greater playing time for young players in an environment of a high competitive level, while Real Madrid can retain a certain degree of control through buy-back clauses or percentages of a future sale. Such an approach is not unusual for big clubs that want to develop players outside their own first team but do not want to completely lose control over their long-term potential. Como is interesting in that sense because it offers the competitive context of Serie A and, after the 2025/26 season, the European stage.
In an official announcement dated August 8, 2025, Real Madrid stated that Gonzalo García extended his contract until June 30, 2030 and became part of the first team. The club emphasized that the Madrid-born forward joined Real’s academy in 2014 as a ten-year-old, that he spent the last two seasons before entering the first team with Castilla and that he made his senior debut in November 2023. In the same announcement, Real Madrid stated that García was the top scorer at the previous Club World Cup and a member of the team of the tournament. The club also recalled that in the previous season he scored 25 goals for Castilla, making him the top scorer in a single season since the founding of the Primera Federación. These data explain why García is mentioned as a reinforcement that could have an immediate attacking impact, not only developmental value.
For Como, signing Gonzalo García would make sense for several reasons. Fàbregas’s team, which will have to distribute minutes across Serie A, European matches and domestic cups, needs attacking depth and players who can develop through a continuous competitive rhythm. According to Real’s official data for the 2025/26 season, García has already accumulated matches and goals in the first team, but competition in Madrid limits the space for a permanent role. At Como, he could get a clearer path toward the status of an important forward, while Real Madrid, according to the models written about by Italian and Spanish media, could try to protect its interest with a return option or a share in a future transfer. Such an agreement, if it happens, would continue the practice in which big clubs carefully balance profit, development and long-term sporting control.
César Palacios fits into a longer-term midfield project
César Palacios is mentioned as a different type of target from Carvajal and Gonzalo García. While Carvajal would represent experience, and García potentially an attacking reinforcement with already visible output, Palacios appears to be an investment in the midfield and a broader development project. Football España reported as early as May 5, 2026, citing Diario AS, that Como was among the clubs interested in Palacios, noting that Real Madrid has often sold Castilla players in recent years while retaining certain rights for the future. The same source states that Palacios was an important member of Castilla and that he had already received call-ups and minutes in the first team. Such information indicates that he is not an anonymous academy player, but a footballer who has already entered the wider professional radar.
Real Madrid’s official profile states that the player’s full name is César Palacios Pérez, that he was born in Soria on November 10, 2004 and that he plays in Castilla’s midfield. Real Madrid’s profile also records his path through the youth categories, after arriving from Numancia, and his appearances in Real’s age groups before Castilla. In a broader sense, Palacios fits the type of player Como can develop without the pressure that he must immediately be a pillar of the team. If the transfer were realized, his role would probably be built gradually, through competition for minutes in the league, cups and the rotations imposed by the European schedule. Such a plan is especially important for midfielders, because the transition from a reserve or development team to senior football at a high level requires adaptation to the rhythm, physical duels and tactical responsibility.
Palacios’s case further shows how interesting Real’s academy is to clubs that want to grow but cannot or do not want to buy only ready-made stars. At Real Madrid, the path to the first team is often extremely narrow because of competition and the constant need for results, while clubs such as Como can offer development space and a clearer perspective. For Real, it would therefore be important whether a possible agreement would include a return option, a percentage of a future sale or some other protective clause. For Como, meanwhile, it is crucial to assess whether Palacios can help the squad’s depth in the short term and become a player of significantly greater market and sporting value in the medium term. For now, according to the available information, there is no officially confirmed agreement.
The connection with Real Madrid has already become part of Como’s model
The mention of Carvajal, Gonzalo García and Palacios is not an isolated episode, but a continuation of a market pattern that has developed around Como in recent seasons. La Gazzetta dello Sport writes that the model was established with the arrival of Nico Paz, another player developed in Real’s system, and that Como can offer young footballers a high level of competition and significant playing time. In its latest report, Goal.com states that Como’s interest in García and Palacios is also viewed in the context of uncertainty over Paz’s future, as he could return to Real Madrid according to media reports. Como still lists Nico Paz in midfield on its official squad list, but market speculation about his status makes squad planning more complex. If an important player leaves, the club must prepare replacements in time that fit the style of play and the financial framework.
In that context, the role of Cesc Fàbregas is especially important. In its official announcement about his appointment, Como stated that he became head coach of the first team on a four-year contract, after a period in which he participated in the project of the club’s return to Serie A. In a statement published on the club’s website, Fàbregas said that he shares the ambitions of the ownership group, while ownership representative Mirwan Suwarso emphasized that the impact of his knowledge and experience could already be seen in the development of the team’s play. Such statements gain additional weight after a season in which Como surprised the Italian competition and secured a European breakthrough. The club must now show whether it can maintain its developmental philosophy while at the same time increasing the quality of the squad for a new level of competition.
Cooperation with Real Madrid, or at least interest in its players, also brings Como a reputational benefit. Young footballers more easily accept leaving a big club if they feel they are moving to an environment that can develop them, and not merely use them as short-term reinforcements. Real Madrid, on the other hand, can in such deals seek controlled exit routes for players who have outgrown Castilla but do not have secure space in the first team. In that equation, Como is trying to position itself as a club that can combine ambition, playing time and tactical development. If that model is confirmed through new transfers, the Italian club could become one of the more important destinations for players from Madrid’s development system.
Transfers still depend on negotiations and Real’s decisions
Despite numerous reports, it is crucial to emphasize that none of the listed deals has been officially confirmed for now. Goal.com states that Como is exploring the possibility of signing Carvajal and monitoring younger Real players, while Gazzetta particularly emphasizes the continued interest in Gonzalo García. Football España, citing Spanish sources, describes Palacios as a midfielder who could leave Valdebebas if a suitable transfer model is agreed. In all these cases, the financial conditions, sporting guarantees, length of contract and possible clauses that would allow Real future influence will be decisive. In Carvajal’s case, his personal choice after leaving the club in which he spent the largest part of his life will also play an additionally important role.
For Como, the upcoming transfer window is a test of maturity. A club entering the Champions League must expand its squad, but it must not disrupt the structure that led it to a historic result. Carvajal would bring experience and leadership, Gonzalo García attacking energy and the potential for quick impact, and César Palacios a longer-term option in midfield. Such a combination sounds attractive, but transfer windows rarely develop linearly, especially when clubs that want to retain control over their own talents are involved. For now, the most precise thing to say is that Como is seriously looking toward Madrid, but only concrete agreements will show whether the ambitious idea can be turned into completed transfers.
Sources:
- Real Madrid C.F. – official statement on the end of Carvajal’s spell at Real Madrid and data about his career (link)
- Real Madrid C.F. – official announcement on Gonzalo García’s contract extension and his entry into the first team (link)
- Real Madrid C.F. – official profile of César Palacios at Real Madrid Castilla (link)
- Como 1907 – official announcement on the appointment of Cesc Fàbregas as head coach of the first team (link)
- Como 1907 – official page with the Serie A table and squad list (link)
- Goal.com – report on Como’s interest in Dani Carvajal, Gonzalo García and César Palacios (link)
- La Gazzetta dello Sport – report on contacts and Como’s interest in Gonzalo García and the market model with players from La Fábrica (link)
- Football España – report on Como’s interest in César Palacios and Real’s practice of retaining future control over Castilla players (link)
- Football Italia – overview of the final 2025/26 Serie A table and confirmation of Como’s qualification for the Champions League (link)