Real Madrid midfielder Arda Guler is close to signing a contract extension with the club.The 21-year-old’s current deal is set to expire in the summer of 2029. However, sources with knowledge of the situation have confirmed to The Athletic that a new deal that an agreement in principle has been reached on a new contract that would expire in 2032.Guler, who joined Madrid from Fenerbahce in the summer of 2023, is now an established member of the first team. Before the 2-1 victory over Inter Milan on Tuesday, he was given the UEFA Champions League Breakthrough Player award for the 2025-26 season, having scored two goals and provided four assists in 14 games.Guler established himself as one of the most promising talents in Europe after coming through in Turkey and chose to join Madrid ahead of Barcelona in a deal worth €20million (£17.1m; $23.2m).He has scored 19 goals and provided 26 assists in 119 games for Madrid, and won five trophies with the Spanish side, including the Champions League and La Liga in 2024. This season, he has started three of Real’s four league games.Guler has also scored seven goals in 33 appearances for Turkey. He played the entirety of all three games of his nation’s World Cup campaign, scoring one goal as the side exited the tournament in the group stage.Guler contract reflects his importance to MadridGuler’s new contract is another indication of how highly Madrid value him and the role they see him playing in the future of the team.The Turkey international is now in his fourth season at the club and has steadily grown in importance. Last season, his first full campaign, he made 51 appearances, scoring six goals and providing 14 assists.His contribution in the Champions League was significant, too, particularly against Bayern Munich, when he scored twice in the second leg of the quarter-final, even though Madrid ultimately went out.It was therefore fitting that, before the Champions League opener against Inter Milan on Tuesday, Guler was presented with the club’s latest award for best young player.Guler has grown in importance at Real since joining the club in 2023 (Angel Martinez/Getty Images)Former coaches Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa both put their trust in him during their respective spells in charge. Jose Mourinho has followed the same path so far, starting Guler in three of Madrid’s first four La Liga games.And Mourinho appears to see another dimension to his game. He said recently that he believes Guler can “maybe not today but in some time” play as a creator, in addition to the more advanced midfield roles he has occupied so far.Senior figures at Madrid were already explaining during the summer why the club had not made a bigger investment in midfield. They viewed players such as Jude Bellingham and Guler as key pieces for the future.The new contract is, in that sense, a reward for how far Guler has come and for the importance he has earned at the club.