Real Madrid have confirmed the return of striker Mariano Diaz from Olympique Lyonnais after activating a buyback option.
The Dominican-born striker had reportedly agreed terms with Sevilla on a €35m move, but Madrid’s first refusal option gave them 48 hours to get a deal done.
Diaz left the European champions in an €8m deal last summer but Madrid have a track record of including buyback clauses and percentages of future sales when sanctioning player exits.
It is reported by various outlets of a fee between €20m-23m after 35% of the European champions’ future sale clause is processed, while he has signed a five-year deal at the Bernabeu.
The 25-year-old netted 21 goals and provided seven assists in 45 appearances last season but had yet to find the net in three outings this campaign.
“I am very happy in Lyon, but one day in the future I would like to return to Spain,” Mariano told an interview with Cadena Cope back in February.
“It was the correct decision by Madrid to let me go…for me, for them, for Lyon. But it is true that it would be a dream for me to return in the future.”
Mariano made eight La Liga appearances for Madrid, all from the bench, scoring one goal with his major contribution coming in the Copa Del Rey.
He joined the club initially from Badalona in 2012 and scored a total of five goals in 14 appearances.
