Atlético sign Hjulmand from Sporting CP for €40m — half his release clause

Atlético Madrid have agreed a deal to sign Morten Hjulmand from Sporting CP for €40m plus add-ons, with the 27-year-old Danish midfielder flying to the Spanish capital on 9 July as both clubs began exchanging paperwork, according to Fabrizio Romano. The new contract runs until June 2031, giving Atlético five years of security on a player entering his peak years.

The fee represents a significant discount on the €80m release clause written into Hjulmand’s Sporting contract, which ran until 2028. Rather than triggering the clause outright, Atlético negotiated a deal that saves them in the region of €40m — a reflection of both clubs’ willingness to do business quickly. The precise breakdown of the add-ons has not been disclosed.

Hjulmand joined Sporting from Italian side Lecce in August 2023 and rapidly became the defensive midfield spine of the Lisbon club’s setup under Rúben Amorim and subsequent coaches. Standing at 1.85m, his game is built on pressing intensity, ball recoveries and aerial dominance rather than creative output — a profile that drew sustained interest from clubs across Europe’s top five leagues before Atlético moved decisively this summer.

There is little ambiguity about the fit. Diego Simeone’s system has always demanded midfielders capable of screening the back four, winning the ball and sustaining the physical load of competing across La Liga and European football. Hjulmand’s profile matches that description closely, prioritising defensive solidity and positional discipline over the kind of creative contribution that would be surplus to requirements in Simeone’s structure.

The signing forms part of what has been a notably active summer window for Los Colchoneros, with the club’s spending suggesting structural ambition rather than reactive squad management. With Hjulmand already in Madrid on the day the deal was confirmed, attention now shifts to his medical, the formal signing of his contract, and how Simeone plans to integrate him into the midfield — and what his arrival means for the existing options in that position.