Franco Mastantuono becomes River Plate's second-most expensive sale ever, trailing only Enzo Fernandez

Forty five million euros, clean, with taxes covered by the buyer. That was the blunt figure behind Franco Mastantuono's move to Real Madrid, a transfer that pushes the total operation above 60 million euros and places the kid from Azul in a very special spot in River Plate's history: second on the club's all-time sales list, behind only Enzo Fernandez.

There's something notable in that number: Mastantuono becomes the most expensive direct sale in Nunez's history, since the Enzo Fernandez case unfolded in two stages. River first sold 75% of his rights to Benfica in 2022 for 18 million euros, and half a year later, already a World Cup champion after Qatar, Chelsea paid 121 million to take him from the Portuguese club. Adding that resale, FIFA's solidarity mechanisms and even a later payment tied to his move to Manchester City, River ended up collecting close to 60 million euros for a player who debuted in 2020 and played just 54 games in the club's colors.

Mastantuono's case has its own flavor. He debuted at just 16 years old, on January 28, 2024, under Martin Demichelis, and from the start it was clear he was different. With Marcelo Gallardo on the bench, he fully broke out: 61 official matches, 11 goals and 7 assists before the Club World Cup, along with a striking maturity that let him take charge of the team at just 17. That leap in form lined up with his first call-up to the Argentina national team for World Cup qualifying, and on the very day of his debut against Chile, his move to Real Madrid was confirmed. His story at the Casa Blanca begins in August.

A podium with familiar names

Behind those two comes Javier Saviola, who left for Barcelona in 2001 for 35.9 million euros after dazzling at the Under-20 World Cup in Argentina, where he won both the Golden Ball and the Golden Boot. At the time, it was the most expensive signing in Barcelona's history. Further down the list, but just as important for Nunez's finances, are Julian Alvarez (21.4 million to Manchester City in 2022) and Pablo Aimar (21.25 million to Valencia in 2001), two icons of different golden generations. The top 10 is rounded out by Lucas Beltran, Lucas Alario, Claudio Echeverri, Marcelo Salas and Exequiel Palacios, all above 17 million euros. Eight of those ten players came up through the club's own youth system, which confirms why River's academy is regarded as one of the most prestigious in South America.

On the staggered payment of the Enzo Fernandez money, the club's own president had already given some detail:

They will finish collecting it in five years.Jorge Brito

With Mastantuono now bound for Spain, River once again proves something that keeps repeating itself over the years: Nunez's talent factory doesn't just produce national team players, it also props up a large part of the club's finances through big money sales.