La Liga

Barcelona star Dani Olmo snubs Real Madrid with bold claim: ‘We made the better signings’

August 01, 2025

**© Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images**Daniel Olmo of FC Barcelona looks onduring the LaLiga match between UD Las Palmas and FC Barcelona at Estadio Gran Canaria on February 22, 2025 in Las Palmas, Spain.

As Spain’s two biggest clubs prepare for a high-stakes 2025–26 season, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid have been active in the summer transfer window. With preseason still underway, Barca midfielder Dani Olmo made headlines by taking a jab at Los Blancos: “We made the better signings.”

Barcelona are coming off a domestic treble-winning campaign, though they fell short of reaching the UEFA Champions League final. Now entering his second year in charge, manager Hansi Flick has focused on reinforcing specific areas of the squad in an effort to build on last season’s success.

Among the key players in that squad is Dani Olmo, who endured registration delays last year due to the club’s financial issues. In an interview with Spanish outlet Cadena COPE, the Spanish international addressed the ongoing transfer activity in La Liga, and offered a confident assessment of Barca’s business compared to their rivals.

“Real Madrid will also want to have the best (players), so in that sense it’s all good. We’ve reinforced ourselves too — and I’d say better,” Olmo said. When asked to double down on the claim, he didn’t hesitate: “Yes, for me, yes.”

Atletico Madrid have also made a splash this summer, spending over €150 million to bolster their roster. But Olmo isn’t fazed: “In the end, all teams make changes in the summer, in the winter, and during the transfer windows. In that sense, we don’t really care if they’re signing or bringing in players. At the end of the day, we have to focus on ourselves.”

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Comparing Barcelona and Real Madrid’s 2025–26 signings

There are many ways to evaluate a team’s transfer business—by money spent, player quality, or long-term potential. Judging by their 2024–25 campaign, Real Madrid entered this summer needing more reinforcements than Barcelona, and they’ve been more aggressive in the market so far.

After the exceptional window opened prior to the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, the summer window reopened on June 16 and will run through September 1. Here’s a look at what each club has done so far.