Arsenal are considering paying the €40m release clause for Espanyol defender Mario Hermoso in January, according to reports in Spain.

Hermoso joined Espanyol from Real Madrid in 2017, having never appeared for Madrid’s first team after coming through their academy. Since then, the 23-year-old has made a name for himself in La Liga, to the point that he’s just received his first call-up for the Spanish national team.

https://twitter.com/SeFutbol/status/1060480390283046913

Suddenly, there are rumours that Real Madrid want to activate their buy-back clause of €7.5m. However, Arsenal are also very interested, according to a report from Marca. They wouldn’t have the same cut-price option as Real, but they could choose to pay Hermoso’s €40m release clause, and they’re considering doing so in January.

If they did, half of that fee would go to Madrid anyway, as per the terms of Hermoso’s original sale.

Hermoso has played every minute of Espanyol’s league campaign so far, scoring a couple of goals and helping them keep five clean sheets in their run up to fifth in the table (above Real).

It’s no surprise the big clubs are starting to take an interest, and that interest will only increase if the Spaniard makes his international debut over the break.