OFFICIAL: Mariano Diaz leaves Real Madrid

Real Madrid have officially announced that striker Mariano Díaz will leave the club when his contract expires this summer. The 29-year-old Dominican international joined Real Madrid in 2011 and played for their C-team and B-team before making his debut for the first team in 2016. He was part of their squad that won La Liga, the UEFA Champions League and the FIFA Club World Cup in 2016–17.

However, he struggled to establish himself as a regular starter under Zinedine Zidane and decided to move to Olympique Lyonnais in 2017. He had a successful season in France, scoring 18 goals in 37 league appearances and helping Lyon qualify for the Champions League.

Real Madrid exercised their buy-back clause and brought him back to the Santiago Bernabéu in 2018 for €21.50m. He inherited the number 7 shirt from Cristiano Ronaldo, who had left for Juventus. However, he failed to live up to expectations and only scored six goals in 52 league appearances for Real Madrid. He was often sidelined by injuries and competition from Karim Benzema, Luka Jovic and Vinícius Júnior.

Real Madrid thanked Mariano for his dedication and professionalism during his time at the club and wished him all the best in his new career.