Real Madrid are signing 19-year-old Ivorian winger Yan Diomande from RB Leipzig for more than £100m, in what is set to be a record sale for Leipzig, a record purchase for Real Madrid, and the highest fee ever paid for an African player. The deal caps an extraordinarily fast rise for a player who was largely unknown to the wider football world less than 18 months ago, underlining how quickly top clubs are now willing to pay huge sums for unproven young talent.

Diomande went unsigned after trials with several European clubs before joining Spanish side Leganes, then moved to Leipzig for around 20m euros, where he impressed with 13 goals and 10 assists in his first full European season. Liverpool and Paris St-Germain were also interested, but Real Madrid won the race for the versatile, right-footed winger, who can play on either flank and represented Ivory Coast at the World Cup. Raised in Abidjan, he left home at nine to play football near the Ghanaian border and moved alone to the United States aged 15 to pursue his career, having previously been rejected by clubs including Chelsea, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace.