Valencia are finally set to spend money in the transfer market this summer, with the addition of winger Luis Rioja. Los Che have been on his trail since December, and now it looks as if they will get the deal over the line.
As per Relevo, Rioja will sign a three-year deal at Mestalla. The 30-year-old has been at Alaves for the past five years and has been a near-constant source of production for El Glorioso. Last season he registered nine goal contributions in La Liga across 37 appearances.
ÚLTIMA HORA❗#Alaves
(Via @MatteMoretto en twitch @relevo)El Alavés está muy interesado en el central turco del Valencia Cenk. Están en negociaciones abiertas. pic.twitter.com/uQy6iwFvfm
— • (@GxlDelKaiser) August 20, 2024
The deal will cost them around €1.3m in total, after Rioja agreed terms some months ago, despite interest from Osasuna and RCD Mallorca. Alaves are now exploring their options to replace him with Nemanja Radonjic from Torino.
Talks between the two sides are not done yet though, with Matteo Moretto reporting that Alaves are interested in Valencia centre-back Cenk Ozkacar, who Los Che are trying to move on.
Rioja’s addition comes in the nick of time, as Ruben Baraja’s frustration was starting to boil over about the lack of additions. Currently his options are limited to Sergi Canos, Fran Perez, Diego Lopez and Hugo Gonzalez out wide, although Rafa Mir operated there in their first match.
