Despite the arrival of World Cup winner Álex Grimaldo as Atlético de Madrid’s new starting left-back, Matteo Ruggeri is not giving in and will decline offers to return to Italy in favor of continuing in the Spanish capital.
That is according to Ruggeri’s agent, Tullio Tinti, who confirmed to Italian outlet Sky Sport that while Roma and Fiorentina have expressed interest in signing him this summer, Ruggeri is “not on the market” after an “extraordinary” debut season in Madrid.
“He had an extraordinary
season with Atlético Madrid,” Tinti said of his client. “To play in a place like Madrid, you need a big personality.
“It’s normal that, after a season like this, there’s interest, not only from Roma and Fiorentina, who have been after him, but also from other Italian and foreign clubs.
“However, Atlético and the player’s intention is to continue together. Nottingham Forest inquired about him in January, but he wasn’t on the market, and he still isn’t.”
Ruggeri, signed from Atalanta last July for under €20 million, had a 2025/26 campaign that few would realistically describe as “extraordinary.” After he took a few months to find his footing, Ruggeri found form in January and started for practically the rest of the season.
Ruggeri laid on seven assists in a 17-game span between Jan. 21 and April 8, and he was a major reason why Atlético were able to upset FC Barcelona in the Champions League quarterfinals. However, the 24-year-old struggled for consistency in LaLiga and he was horrible in the Copa del Rey final, where Atleti lost to Real Sociedad on penalties.
The chances for Ruggeri to stay grew when Madrileño full-back Julio Díaz reached agreement over the weekend to sign for Sevilla, and it sounds like the player is content to challenge for his place in 2026/27. Spanish media had been reporting for weeks that the club had put Ruggeri on the market, and Mateu Alemany was hoping to sell him to fund further transfers this summer.
We’ve probably already seen the best Ruggeri has to offer: he has deadly crossing ability but he is an inconsistent if not poor one-on-one defender. That makes his decision to stay a neutral one; his value likely will depreciate as a second-choice left-back, but Atlético will always have the option to sell him to Serie A at a good price.
