Real Madrid midfield target prefers La Liga move over Premier League – ‘I’d love to go and play in Spain’

Real Madrid midfield target Kees Smit has admitted that he would prefer to play in Spain over England, news which will no doubt go down well with Madridistas. On the other hand, he has also declared that two of his idols are Barcelona players.

Smit is believed to be one of the players on Real Madrid’s shortlist to strengthen the midfield position this summer, alongside Manchester City’s Rodri Hernandez. After AZ Alkmaar hired agent Jorge Mendes to broker a deal, his price tag is predicted to be around €60m, and in addition to Los Blancos, the likes of Newcastle United, Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal have all been linked to him.

Smit prefers La Liga move over Premier League

Already last summer, it was news that both Barcelona and Real Madrid were following his progress closely. Speaking to Supergaande, he explained that he had originally planned to make a move within the Netherlands. Diario AS carried his quotes.

“[I’d like to play in] La Liga. Playing there would be great. I love the sun; I’m tired of playing in so much cold and rain, so I’d love to go and play in Spain. Ideally, I’d like take the next step at another team in the Netherlands, but I don’t think that’s going to happen. I never considered leaving AZ. My dream was to play here for the rest of my life.”

Smit on Real Madrid and Premier League interest

Smit confirmed last summer that he had received interest from Barcelona and Real Madrid, but revealed that he had originally intended to move within the Eredevisie. His price tag looks as if it will accelerate a move abroad though.

“I had offers, but I felt it was best to keep developing here. To be honest, I never even looked at the figures they were offering. And thank goodness for that. Otherwise, I would have started to have doubts. In the end, I’m happy with my decision.”

“Last year, I struggled mainly physically. I felt I had a lot of room for improvement, so it was best to keep growing here. I quickly earned the trust of the teammates.”

Smit grew up watching Barcelona

Back in November, Smit had also declared Barcelona his favourite club. That does not prohibit 20-year-old from joining Los Blancos, but certainly won’t endear him to the Bernabeu.

“I really enjoyed watching Barca. I grew up watching Iniesta and Messi play, who I consider two of my role models.”

Cubarsí: "I'd say the most important thing is how you approach the matches and the things you have to do well to advance. Even if you played semi-finals last season, that doesn't mean you'll do it again this season."

— barcacentre (@barcacentre) March 17, 2026

One of the brighter talents in midfield in Europe, Smit is in a position of need for Los Blancos. On the other hand, Barcelona have a number of holes in their squad, but arguably midfield is the position they are most well stocked at. Given said cost of any deal, it seems unlikely the Catalan giants compete for him.

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