Como, assistance from Real: no Inter move, another year on loan

The European champions hold a buy-back clause but will only make a decision at the end of the season.

Will Nico Paz stay at Como? Will he join Inter? Or will he return to Real Madrid, who hold a buy-back option for the next three years? Here, based on the information we have, is Real Madrid's point of view.

The club, led by President Perez, considers Nico Paz a talented player with strong technical skills. They are closely monitoring his performances in Serie A. Real Madrid has a triple buy-back option: €9 million in 2025, €10 million in 2026, and €11 million in 2027, which can be exercised before the start of the summer transfer window.

Furthermore, Real holds a 50% share of any future resale if Como decides to sell Nico Paz and also retains the right to match any competing club’s offer to bring him back, should they not activate the buy-back option before the summer window.

However, no decision has been made yet regarding his return to Valdebebas (where he grew up through Real’s youth academy and played for Real Castilla, the club’s B team). A final decision will be made at the end of the season.

This is mainly due to the uncertainty surrounding Real Madrid’s coach. Will Ancelotti continue, despite having a contract until June 2026? Or will Xabi Alonso, currently at Bayer Leverkusen and admired as a possible replacement for Ancelotti, take over? Or could there be a surprise choice?

If Ancelotti stays ("Nico Paz is doing very well," Ancelotti recently commented), a return of the playmaker to the white jersey seems unlikely.

If Xabi Alonso or someone else arrives, it will be up to the new coach to evaluate the situation and decide whether Paz would have a consistent role in the squad.

Real Madrid's current plan is to leave the player at Como, where he can continue to grow and gain experience. This will allow them to assess him more carefully after another year in the Italian league. For Real, this is the ideal solution at the moment.

There are also internal doubts within the club about whether the young playmaker already has the personality needed to succeed at the most famous club in the world, competing to establish himself among the team's superstars like Bellingham, Mbappé, and Vinicius.

So far, Nico Paz has made 3 appearances in the 2023/24 Champions League (scoring 1 goal against Napoli and playing a total of 39 minutes against Sporting Braga, Union Berlin, and Napoli), plus 1 appearance in the Copa del Rey against Arandina, where he played 70 minutes.

The question remains whether Nico Paz can truly become a key figure in Real Madrid's future.