Barcelona are reportedly set to rival Real Madrid in the race to sign prodigious Uruguayan defender Santiago Bueno, who currently plies his trade at Penarol.

Don Balon have reported that Barcelona are set to battle their fierce rivals Real Madrid in the race to land Penarol defender Santiago Bueno. The 18-year-old prodigious talent has been on Real Madrid’s radar for quite some time now. And, it seems Barcelona have joined Los Blancos in the pursuit of Santiago.

Santiago Ignacio Bueno Sciutto is an 18-year-old Uruguayan defensive prospect who has come up through the ranks at Penarol. The player is a natural centre-back, but is equally capable of being deployed in the central midfield. The towering right-footed Uruguayan has already broken into the Uruguay’s Under-20 international side, with 1 goal in 14 appearances for them.

Bueno first came on the radar of Real Madrid and their club president Florentino Perez, when Los Blancos went in for Federico Valverde from the Uruguayan league. But the club decided not to pursue Bueno heavily after the successful pursuit of Federico Valverde, who is now plying his trade for Real Madrid Castilla.

Bueno comes from a footballing family and is hailed as a real leader, with the player currently serving as the captain of Penarol’s Under-19 side. The centre-back is also set to don the captain’s armband for Uruguay’s Under-20 side for the South American Under-20 championships to be held in Ecuador.

The 18-year-old, though, has an Italian passport, which means that there is unlikely to be any hassles in the player’s transfer to Europe, be it to Barcelona, Real Madrid or otherwise. The player is contracted to Penarol till 2018 and with his deal set to expire in less than 2 years, the player is unlikely to command a transfer fee towards the higher end.

And, even if the asking price does reach to a respectable amount, neither of the two interested parties will baulk, provided they see Bueno as a valuable addition to their present roster, be it for the instant inclusion in the first-team setup or a future investment.

Also, Mundo Deportivo have suggested that, as per the local reports, Barcelona are set to put an offer on the table of Penarol in order to land Santiago Bueno. It is to be seen whether this news calls Real Madrid in action and Los Blancos could very well also come in with an offer of their own for the 18-year-old.

Barcelona have already inflicted a heavy defeat to Florentino Perez with the purchase of Andre Gomes in the summer transfer window and may be readying up for a repeat of the same. Not if Perez has something to say about it, though. And, chances are, he will.

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