What's the story? Real Madrid has re-signed Mariano from Lyon after the forward spent only 14 months playing in Ligue 1. The deal, worth approximately €23 million, was announced on Real Madrid's official website and Twitter account in the early hours of the morning. In case you didn't know... Mariano, a player of Dominican-Spanish decent who chose to represent the Dominican Republic at international level spent part of his development at Real Madrid. The 25-year-old played for one season in the Los Blancos youth setup before moving through the senior ranks between 2012 and 2017. The forward played 46 times for Real Madrid C, 44 times for Real Madrid B, and made eight appearances for the first team. Despite his potential and the effort which Real Madrid put into his development, Mariano moved to Lyon in June 2017 for a fee of approximately €8 million. The heart of the matter While Los Blancos did not insert a buy-back clause into the transfer, there was a stipulation in the agreement that meant the Madrid club would receive 35% of any future sale or Mariano. Due to this stipulation, Real Madrid paid a discounted price for Mariano who is valued at around €35 million. The tall striker has enjoyed a great spell at Lyon, scoring 18 goals in just 37 appearances. It is this form which has encouraged Real Madrid to move for his services after a brief stint away from the Bernebeau. The club has been seeking a replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo and while Mariano is nowhere near that level yet, Julen Lopetegui believes there is much more to come from the Dominican international. Official Statement Real Madrid welcomed the return of Mariano with an official statement reading: Real Madrid C. F. and Olympique Lyonnais have agreed a deal for the player Mariano, who will be with the Whites for the next five seasons. The player will be presented on Thursday 31st August, at 1:30pm CEST in the Santiago Bernabéu presidential box. Mariano will then take to the Santiago Bernabéu pitch wearing the Real Madrid C. F. kit. He will then speak to the press in the press room. Video What's next? We will likely see Mariano provide competition for Karim Benzema this season with appearances mainly coming from the bench. However, if the 25-year-old can continue his form from over the past 12 months, it is possible that he can establish himself as a first-team player and lead the Madrid attack.<doc-sep>After a single season in the French top flight, the forward has returned to the Spanish capital to help fill the void left by Cristiano Ronaldo Real Madrid have made their first major attacking signing since the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo, with Mariano Diaz returning to the club from Lyon. Mariano left Madrid for Lyon a year ago for €8 million but the Ligue 1 side have agreed a deal worth a possible €30m (£27m/$35m) for the striker. As revealed by Goal, Sevilla were interested in Mariano but their attempted capture of the 25-year-old fell through when Madrid's interest in triggering their option to buy emerged. Mariano has signed a five-year deal with Madrid and he will be presented to the club's fans at the Santiago Bernabeu on Friday. Earlier on Wednesday, Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas indicated Mariano's move to Madrid was imminent. "Mariano told us that he absolutely wanted to leave, the offer from Sevilla arrived without being solicited," Aulas told reporters. "Keeping a player against his will is a bad preparation for a healthy season. "With Sevilla, we found an agreement but then Real Madrid came and had an option to buy. We did not think they were going to use it, but they did it yesterday morning." Mariano made a great start to life in France, scoring 18 league goals in 2017-18, but he has not found the net since April. His arrival will ease the goalscoring burden on Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale following the shock sale of Ronaldo to Serie A champions Juventus in a €112m deal after the Portugal captain helped Madrid to win their third consecutive Champions League title in May. 3 - Players born in Spain with the most goals last season (top five leagues – all comps): 1 - Iago Aspas: 23 2 - MARIANO DÍAZ: 21 3 - Aritz Aduriz: 20 Hunter. pic.twitter.com/CMVD5QY4vV — OptaJose (@OptaJose) August 28, 2018 Lyon have confirmed their interest in Moussa Dembele as a replacement for Mariano, but they face competition from Ligue 1 rivals Marseille for the Celtic striker. Article continues below "We cannot announce the replacement of Mariano yet. His arrival and the departure of Mariano will be connected," Aulas said. "Moussa Dembele is a target, yes. But I also read that Marseille were on it. Is it harder for them than for us? Yes, I think so. "We came into contact with Moussa Dembele. The player is interested in Lyon but Celtic are hard in negotiations. There are other targets."<doc-sep>Mariano is in Madrid and will be presented on Friday Transfer Market - Real Madrid At the Santiago Bernabeu After his signing for Real Madrid became official, Mariano traveled by private plane from Lyon to the Spanish capital. The player will be presented this Friday August 31, at 1:30pm CET, in the VIP room at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu. Subsequently, he will step onto the pitch with the Real Madrid shirt on and will attend the media in the press room.<doc-sep>Mariano Diaz returned to Real Madrid on Wednesday after spending one season with Lyon, where he scored 21 goals. Madrid exercised a clause that gave them the priority opportunity to bring back the 25-year-old, who signed a five-year contract until 2023. Lyon confirmed Madrid would pay €30 million to bring back Mariano, plus €3m in potential bonuses, after selling him to Lyon for €8m a year ago. Lyon will also receive 15 percent of any future sale. Mariano joined Madrid in 2012 from Badalona and rose up the ranks before making his debut against Celta Vigo under Zinedine Zidane during the 2016-17 campaign. He made 14 appearances for Madrid that season, with five goals in all competitions. Madrid coach Julen Lopetegui reportedly called Mariano, who was said to be very close to a deal with Sevilla, to explain what was expected of him on his return to the club if he was interested. Lyon's Mariano Diaz during a friendly against Benfica. Carlos Rodrigues/Getty Images Before the deal was announced, Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas revealed some details of the transfer, claiming that Madrid were not always interested in the player. "Mariano told me he wanted to go to Madrid before passing on the Sevilla offer," Aulas said. "I told Florentino and he told me that he wasn't the player he was looking for. And then the offer came in." Mariano will play as Karim Benzema's back-up, with Borja Mayoral moving down the pecking order again if he does not leave on loan. "We decided, between the club, the coach and myself, that the best option for me was to leave to gain regular playing time, but I'll never close the door on Real Madrid," Mariano said in January. Aulas said Lyon would look to sign a replacement before the transfer window ends on Friday and admitted interest in Celtic's Moussa Demebele and Lille's Nicolas Pepe.<doc-sep>
Real Madrid have re-signed striker Mariano Diaz from Lyon for £33m on a five-year deal, just a year after selling the player for £7.2m. The 25-year-old striker, who scored 21 goals in 45 appearances for Lyon last season, will be presented as a Real Madrid player at the Bernabeu on August 31. Lyon thanked Mariano for his efforts last season and expressed their delight that his performances for the club secured him a move to the champions of Europe. Lyon confirm approach for Dembele The French club's statement also said the deal to sign Mariano from Real Madrid gave the Spanish giants a first-refusal on the player, meaning they could match any fee paid to Lyon for the player and be given priority. Image: Moussa Dembele is a target for Lyon Sevilla had been expected to sign the Dominican Republic international for a reported club-record fee. However, the Andalusian side's president Pepe Castro confirmed on Tuesday Real were set to hijack the deal. "We are an ambitious club and things like that happen when you want players of this level," said Castro, speaking on Tuesday. Real renew Sterling interest 1:00 Brendan Rodgers confirms Dembele interest from Lyon "It is true that Madrid had a preferential option and told us that they will exercise it but we still do not have the player's notification." Celtic striker Moussa Dembele could potentially be a replacement for Mariano. Lyon's president Jean-Michael Aulas confirmed they had made contact with the player who he claims to be interested in a move to France.