River Plate's Exequiel Palacios 'Proud That Real Madrid Are Interested in Me'

River Plate's Exequiel Palacios has expressed his pride at Real Madrid's interest in him.

The player's agent, Renato Corsi, told Marca on Friday that Real will soon make a "formal offer" for him, and Palacios is flattered.

He told ESPN on Tuesday (h/t Marca):

"I am proud that Real Madrid are interested in me.

"It is difficult to get away from all the things that are said on social media. I try to be calm and enjoy; my friends want me to stay here.

"Real Madrid are a very big club but my head has always been here at River, where I wanted to take advantage and have the chance to play regularly in the starting line-up.

"Luckily [the chance] was given to me and I'm taking full advantage of it.

"My family will respect my decision as in a very short time, many good things have happened to me and I have to remain calm and enjoy this."

The 20-year-old broke into River's side in 2017 before becoming a regular last year, helping the club win the 2018 Copa Libertadores.

Ahead of the second leg of the final against bitter rivals Boca Juniors, WhoScored shared some of the youngster's numbers:

Palacios splits his time between playing in central midfield and a more advanced position, and he looks to drive his team forward before creating opportunities in the final third. In 41 appearances for River, he has four goals and five assists to his name.

While he's not a holding midfielder, he doesn't shirk his defensive responsibilities either and he'll work hard to regain possession for his side when they lose the ball.

Los Blancos would be a significant step up if he does move to the Santiago Bernabeu, and game time wouldn't be easy to come by either.

Dani Ceballos, 22, has started just 19 matches for Real since he joined in 2017, while Marcos Llorente, 23, has made just 21 starts for the club where he came through the ranks.

Palacios will not only be competing with them but also Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro for minutes, but he's an exciting young player who could impress if given the chance to develop his game.