Dean Huijsen's Journey at Real Madrid: From Promise to Power
Dean Huijsen is about to discover whether promise turns into power at Real Madrid.
The 21-year-old centre-back steps into his second season at the Bernabeu with the Teresa Herrera Trophy against Deportivo La Coruna offering more than just pre-season minutes. It is a stage, and right now Huijsen is auditioning to become a first-choice defender under Jose Mourinho.
Cleared from the minor injury that ruled him out of the club’s trip to Austria, he is expected to start later today. The message from within the club, as reported by AS, is blunt: last year was about adaptation; this one is about elevation.
From instant impact to a harsh reality check
Huijsen’s Madrid story ignited quickly. He arrived just over a year ago, in June 2025, and was thrown straight into the Club World Cup. Real Madrid did not lift the trophy, but the young defender walked away as one of the brightest notes in Xabi Alonso’s side.
That form bled into the opening weeks of La Liga. Confident on the ball, aggressive in duels, he looked like he had skipped the usual learning curve.
Then came Madrid’s first real slump of the season.
As the team’s results dipped, so did Huijsen’s reliability. The same confidence that had impressed began to spill over into overconfidence. Risky decisions crept in. Lapses in concentration cost him, and with them went his status as an automatic starter.
He spent a stretch of the campaign on the outside looking in.
The response, though, was telling. In the final months of the season, Huijsen rebuilt himself. Simpler choices, cleaner defending, fewer errors. He finished the year looking more like the defender who had burst onto the scene than the one who had lost his way in mid-season.
Now he wants that version to be the baseline, not the exception.
No. 4 on his back, leadership on his mind
Huijsen is not just another squad player. Inside Valdebebas, he is viewed as one of the club’s major long-term investments, and the No. 4 shirt on his back underlines that belief.
He sees himself as a future leader of the Madrid defence. Mourinho knows him well enough to judge whether that ambition is realistic.
Their connection goes back to the Portuguese coach’s time at AS Roma, when Mourinho personally pushed to bring Huijsen in on loan. That spell in Serie A toughened him up and sped up his development before he made the leap to the Premier League and, ultimately, Madrid.
Now Mourinho is the one calling the shots at the Bernabeu, and Huijsen has used pre-season to remind him of their shared history.
He started both training matches at Valdebebas and looked sharp. Minor physical issues then kept him out of the first official friendly against Fiorentina in Austria, a frustrating pause just as he was building rhythm. He returned against Ferencvaros, playing the second half and using those 45 minutes to edge back towards full match fitness.
The signs are encouraging. The stakes are higher.
Konate arrives, and the margin for error shrinks
If last season offered Huijsen room to make mistakes, this one will not.
David Alaba has gone, and in his place Ibrahima Konate has walked into the dressing room, bringing Champions League pedigree and immediate competition for minutes. The Frenchman has not come to be a spectator.
For Huijsen, that changes everything. He knows Mourinho’s demands. He knows the club rate him highly. But he also knows that a big number on his back and a big fee in his past will not protect him if his performances dip again.
This season is about transforming potential into weekly reliability. About proving he can anchor the heart of Real Madrid’s defence, not just flash in and out of the lineup.
While Huijsen fights for his place at the back, another battle is brewing in front of him.
Camavinga and Tchouameni under the microscope
Real Madrid’s summer has been dominated by questions in midfield. Contract talks, potential exits, and the arrival of Bernardo Silva have all fed into a sense of flux.
Two names sit at the centre of it: Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga.
Both have been floated as possible departures at various points in the window, even with Tchouameni understood to have agreed a new long-term deal with the club. No official announcement has arrived, which has only fuelled speculation.
According to ESPN journalist Rob Dawson, speaking on The United Stand, Manchester United are watching both Frenchmen closely as “market opportunities” rather than active pursuits.
The intrigue around Camavinga runs deeper. Dawson revealed that intermediaries sounded out Premier League clubs about the 23-year-old before the window truly opened.
“United were told before the summer that Real Madrid were going to look to try and get a few players out the door,” Dawson said. “As far as I know, Camavinga was offered to Premier League clubs by intermediaries just to gauge interest.”
It reflects the uncertainty around his status. Camavinga wants to stay. He has said as much through his camp. But under Mourinho he has not yet nailed down an undisputed starting role, and his pre-season has done little to shift that. Given opportunities, he has struggled to dominate games the way a Madrid midfielder must.
Tchouameni’s case: commitment and doubt
Tchouameni’s situation is more layered.
On one hand, he is believed to have agreed a new long-term contract with Real Madrid, a clear sign of commitment from both sides. On the other, the lack of an official statement keeps a sliver of doubt alive.
United, as Dawson outlined, are not in full pursuit mode. They are waiting, watching, ready to move only if the situation tilts in their favour.
“I think United are looking at those two as market opportunities,” he said, before stressing the conditions required for any move.
“You have to be sure that they want to play for Man United, that they want to leave Real Madrid and they’re not just being forced out, you have to make sure that they fit into your wage structure.”
The message from Old Trafford is clear: no panic, no desperation. If Madrid open the door, United want to be close enough to step through.
The Rodri twist and a window left ajar
One signing could have changed everything.
Had Real Madrid managed to prise Rodri away, the domino effect would have been brutal for at least one of their current holding midfielders. With the Spaniard in the building, it would have been almost inevitable that either Tchouameni or Camavinga left this summer.
That move never materialised. The consequence is simple: both Frenchmen still have a clear chance to win over Mourinho and secure their long-term place in his plans.
The next few weeks will be decisive. If Real Madrid still decide to bring in another specialist for the holding role before the window shuts, the picture shifts again. That is the scenario Manchester United are quietly preparing for, the moment when a frustrated midfielder becomes a genuine “market opportunity”.
For now, Huijsen fights to lock down the No. 4 shirt on the pitch, while Tchouameni and Camavinga battle to protect their futures in front of him.
One question lingers over Valdebebas as the season approaches: in a squad this stacked, who turns promise into permanence, and who gets squeezed out when the next big decision lands?
