Real Madrid To Sign Huntelaar

Real Madrid president Ramón Calderón promised his club a striker for Christmas, and according to the press this is what he has delivered in the form of Ajax's Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

The Spanish press report that Real Madrid have effectively signed Dutch striker Klaas Jan-Huntelaar and will unveil him in the transfer window.

As, Marca, Cadena SER, El Mundo and others have all confirmed that the signing is absolutely on the verge of taking place and that a deal is as good as done. De Telegraaf in the Netherlands has since confirmed talks between the two parties, too.

The 25-year-old has been admired by the top clubs around Europe for a while now and this move has been on the cards, with Pedja Mijatovic declaring just this morning that he was a priority signing for the Spanish side.

The Ajax striker has scored an impressive 75 goals in 90 games for the Dutch side and will be eligible to play in the Champions League for the defending La Liga champions.

The only negative point is that he is injured until January and has never played for a top European side in the past, despite his age.

Huntelaar was made club captain earlier this season by coach Marco Van Basten and appeared at the European Championships for Holland, finding the back of the net against Romania.

Overall for his country he has played eleven times and scored seven goals, ironically struggling to get in the team because of the presence of Ruud Van Nistelrooy, the man he could well now partner at Real Madrid.

UPDATE: It has since emerged that Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has given the 'OK' for his transfer to take place, having agreed both wages and a contract duration at the Bernabeu. All that is now needed is Ajax's confirmation of a sale. Apparently the Amsterda outfit will decide for sure within the next 48 hours, but it does seem extremely likely that Huntelaar will be a Madrid player sooner rather than later.

--James Walker-Roberts, Goal.com