Real Madrid's transfer plans hinge on shoring up the defence, and the centre in particular. In the summer of 2025, Los Blancos signed Dean Huijsen for close to 60 million euros, and last summer they brought in Ibrahima Konaté on a free transfer from Liverpool.
The activity inside the Santiago Bernabéu offices never stops, though, and the club continues to monitor talent across the globe. One such name is Finn Jeltsch, the 20-year-old German centre-back who plays for Stuttgart.
AS newspaper report that signing a centre-back is not a pressing need for Real Madrid right now, with the team boasting five players in the position: Huijsen, Konaté, Raúl Asencio, Antonio Rüdiger and Éder Militão.
Rüdiger is entering the final year of his contract, though, and could well leave at the end of the season depending on his form. The club trust Militão's abilities but worry about his physical condition after several injuries, including two ruptures of the cruciate ligament. That is why Real Madrid are tracking the defensive market with such interest.
Enter Jeltsch. The young centre-back with huge potential keeps shining for Stuttgart, and during the current international break he earned his first call-up to the German national team. Coach Jürgen Klopp was watching him closely, and the new Germany boss picked him among an expanded list, keen to make contact as quickly as possible with the players he will work with.
Jeltsch came through at Nürnberg before moving to Stuttgart, and he also lit up Germany's youth ranks, winning the world and European titles with the under-17s. He joined his current club in the winter of 2025 and quickly nailed down a place in the side despite his tender age. Last season he racked up close to 2,500 minutes. He began the current campaign by featuring in most of the available matches and also made his Champions League debut.
What sets Jeltsch apart is his good touch on the ball, and above all his ability to carry it forward with his head up rather than his passing, though he strikes a fine long ball too. He also boasts a strong physical frame at 188 centimetres tall, and in the youth categories he chipped in with a decent number of goals.
Nobody knows his real price yet, but his value can be inferred from Transfermarkt, which currently estimates it at around 35 million euros. Just a year and a half ago, that figure stood at only 5 million euros.