The recent displays of Elijf Elmas have caught the attention of Real Madrid and Barcelona. The Napoli midfielder scored twice in the key World Cup qualifier against Iceland. The win allowed North Macedonia to punch their ticket to the playoff. They surpassed Romania in the final two matches.
Elmas has not been a full-time starter, but he has been getting regular minutes with Luciano Spalletti at the helm. He has notched 16 appearances across all competitions, scoring twice. The coach has exploited his versatility, as the midfielder can feature in multiple roles. He has played as a box-to-box, no.10, or even as a left winger, relieving Lorenzo Insigne when necessary. He has drawn the start seven times.
Elmas is in his third year at Napoli, which acquired him for €16M from Fenerbahce in 2016. Carlo Ancelotti was a major proponent of the signing and remains a big fan. He is also on Barcelona’s radar, as they are looking for some new youngsters to rebuild the team, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports.
The 22-year-old is under contract until 2025. Napoli would like to hold onto him but, as most Italian teams in this day and age, they will listen to the potential offers before making their decision. The midfielder has a relatively low salary as he earns €1.5M per year. He has accumulated 96 appearances since joining the Partenopei, tallying 6 goals and 4 assists. He has 30 caps with his national, for which he has hit the net on 7 occasions.