Real Madrid announced the arrival of Real Sociedad defender Alvaro Odriozola on Thursday night.
The European giants activated Odriozola €40m (£35.6m) release clause and the Spain international has put pen to paper on a six-year deal running until 2024.
New Madrid manager Julen Lopetegui included Odriozola in Spain’s 23-man squad for the 2018 World Cup before he was sacked on the eve of the tournament.
Odriozola was expected to deputise for Dani Carvajal in Spain’s opening group game after starting their warm-up matches but Lopetegui’s replacement, Fernando Hierro, started Nacho instead.
Madrid have made a clear attempt to hoover up all of the best Spanish talent in recent years, making Odriozola their latest acquisition.
The Spanish giants have also signed 18-year-old Brazilian wonderkid Vinicius Junior and 19-year-old goalkeeper Andriy Lunin this summer.
Odriozola made 35 appearances in the league last season, garnering a less than impressive WhoScored rating of 6.53 from right-back.
There are fears the 22-year-old’s development will stagnate at Madrid, as was the case for the likes of Marco Asensio, Marco Llorente, Borja Mayoral and Dani Ceballos last season.
