Spain international winger Pedro Munitis has joined Real Madrid from Racing Santander in what he described as "a dream move".

"I've been desperate to come to Real Madrid," said Munitis after the estimated £6.8m transfer.

The 25-year-old has long been a target for Real Madrid, but the timing of the signing was a surprise as the European champions are in the middle of a bitter presidential battle.

But with Deportivo La Coruna also bidding for a player who had an excellent Euro 2000, club technical director Jose Martinez Pirri decided to close the deal.

Munitis scored a superb goal in Spain's dramatic 4-3 victory over Yugoslavia at Euro 2000.

And he was outstanding in the first half of the quarter-final defeat by France, as Lilian Thuram failed to combat his tricky skills.

He has been at Racing since 1994, and made his international debut in Spain's famous 9-0 victory over Austria in a European championship qualifier last year.