'Incredible' player Arsenal sold for £500k now £60m Real Madrid target

Because, if it wasn’t for the twinkle-toed duo, Arsenal’s decision to accept a mere £500,000 from PSV Eindhoven for a teenage Donyell Malen would probably have been the source of a great deal of frustration, especially as the jet-heeled Dutchman finished his final season at the Eredivisie giants with 27 goals in all competitions before securing a big move to Borussia Dortmund. Photo by Alexandre Simoes/Borussia Dortmund via Getty Images As luck would have it, Saka and Martinelli have enjoyed a rather staggering exponential growth themselves. So much so that Malen would probably struggle to nail down a starting place at the Emirates these days. The Netherlands international certainly isn’t finding opportunities hard to come by in the Bundesliga, however. He took up much of the goalscoring mantle following the departure of Erling Haaland to Manchester City in 2022. And, according to TEAMtalk, Real Madrid are ‘keeping tabs’ alongside a number of top-level Premier League teams. Liverpool are reportedly long-time admirers. Manchester United could do with another goalscorer too. A potential £60 million move to the Santiago Bernabeu, meanwhile, could be inspired by the remarkable impact Malen’s former Dortmund team-mate Jude Bellingham has made in the Spanish capital. Malen may potentially be an alternative to Real’s number one target Kylian Mbappe too. While he lacks the PSG star’s remarkable consistency, he does share Mbappe’s searing pace and his ability to grab a game by the scruff of the neck. “We’ve known for months that he has incredible potential,” BVB director Sebastian Kehl told WAZ of Malen back in April, the Dutchman in the best form of his Dortmund career at the time. “He is an incredibly enriching element for this team. That was the idea behind his signing and I’m glad he’s showing that much more often now. The last step was still missing for him, and he has taken it now. “Donny has gained incredible self-confidence.” Malen spent two years in Arsenal’s academy between 2015 and 2017. He left without ever making a first team appearance for The Gunners.