Fourteen times European kings and LaLiga giants, Real Madrid is planning its playing personnel for the next decade. They are thinking about new signings to further strengthen all the areas of the field. It is said that the midfield is sorted for the next ten years, with the arrival of Jude Bellingham, Arda Guler to join Eduardo Cammavinga, Fede Valverde and Auriel Tuchomieni. The old war horses, Tony Kross and Luka Modric is still revving at a high level and so is Cebellous. With the contingents, that area of the field is truly sorted.
But now, the club is thinking about reinforcing the other positions, particularly the attack and defence.
While the wait for Frenchman Kyllian Mbappe seems endless, a Brazilian pearl, a kid gem has been recruited, and is the on the to join forces with fellow compatriots, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo Goes next summer.
Felipe Endrick, the teenage sensation of Palmerias is the new target man the team is banking on to form the next attacking trident with Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo. However, this is hypothetical.
The club President, Florentino Perez, despite all the hiccups, seems obsessed with the pursuit of Mbappe. Should Mbappe arrives, where would he plays? And where would Endrick plays? What happens to one of Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo? Agreed, the club is big enough to keep the four superstars in its ranks, but definitely, may not be able to fix them into a line-up.
Although an easy path might have been created by the young in-coming attacker when he claimed that “I am excited playing with Mbappe”. According to him, he would like all the big names to come Real Madrid, since it is the biggest and best club in the World. This means, easily, all four superstars goalscorere can co-habit in the same structure without ego hiccups.
A Spanish journalist, Felix Dias disclosed that since December, 2022, the club signed Endrick, technical members of the club have travelled to Brazil about four times to convey confidence in him, make him feel like a Real Madrid player and show him what Real Madrid is about.
This is because the new marquee teenage signing hasn’t enjoyed the easiest year since agreeing a deal to move to the Santiago Bernabeu in December 2022.
In October 2022, Endrick was the hottest commodity in Brazilian football. The forward, then 16, made his top-flight debut for league winners Palmeiras after years of impressing for the club’s youth sides. Later that month, he bagged a brace against Athletico Paranaense to become the youngest goalscorer in Brazilian Serie A history.
He wasn’t exactly unknown – Real Madrid had been pursuing Endrick for nearly a year – but Endrick seemed to be on the verge of superstardom. Los Blancos, accordingly, pounced as soon as Palmeiras were willing to negotiate, paying the Brazilian club €60 million (£52m/$64m) to secure his services starting in summer 2024 – a record fee for a Serie A side.
But it hasn’t all gone smoothly for the teenager. Endrick, in fact, has looked rather like a young player still growing into the game.
Since he sealed the move to Madrid, Endrick has endured a tricky nine months, experiencing long spells without scoring, clashing with his club, and going viral for the wrong reasons. But there have also been highs: impressive goals, highlight-reel dribbles, and plenty of reasons for excitement.
A young man with a strong mental strength. He blurted out in an interview recently: “I hate going out. I hate going to parties. I hate going to clubs. I just want to play football & be with my family.”
He “just want to play ball”, by the year 2023 has been most tumultuous, playing wise for him.
After much speculation – and lengthy transfer pursuit from a number of Europe’s top clubs – Madrid sealed the signature of Palmeiras’ hottest prospect during the 2022 World Cup. They shelled out €60m (£52m/$64m) for the youngster, coordinating with the same scout who found Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo and Federico Valverde to seal the deal.
It didn’t matter that the teenager had only made his first team debut two months before. Madrid had been working on the transfer for years, and paid a premium to get their man.
Still, the 16-year-old wasn’t guaranteed to be a first team regular. Far from it. Palmeiras had a number of more experienced options who seemed likely to keep Endrick out of the side, stunting his growth before it could properly begin.
But that changed with the sales of Danilo and Gustavo Scarpa to Nottingham Forest in January. Although neither was an out-and-out striker, they shouldered a solid chunk of attacking load. Their departures, then, opened a spot for Endrick to thrive.
But it didn’t go smoothly for the teenager. Endrick’s struggles started almost immediately after he agreed a deal with Madrid, the 16-year-old embarking on a lengthy goalless spell. Most of it seemed to be self-inflicted. Endrick looked like he was trying to do too much for his team.
The numbers were undoubtedly concerning, though. Endrick started eight of 10 games to open the season, failed to register a goal contribution, and missed four big chances. It mattered little that his side were struggling without attacking talent around the youngster; this was a soon-to-be Real Madrid player who simply couldn’t find the back of the net.
And it seemed to catch up with the youngster. Endrick was pictured crying on the bench after his scoreless drought hit double digits, the image of a future Madridista covering his eyes on the sideline going viral.
He was swiftly defended by his manager, Abel Ferreira, who admitted that he should “have given Endrick a hug” following his removal from the contest. The manager also called for patience with his starlet, well aware of the pressures placed on him by the historic transfer fee.
“You have to be calm. Nobody likes criticism. There is tremendous pressure on him to score five or six goals and he tries to deal with it himself. The goal will appear at the right time. You just have to be calm and keep smiling,” he said after Palmeiras’ 2-0 win over RB Bragantino.
Despite his struggles, Endrick’s profile only continued to rise. He had been burdened with Gabriel Jesus comparisons from a young age, given his relatively short stature and powerful frame. Endrick himself admitted that he was neither a pure No.9 nor a No.10, only increasing scrutiny.
Brazilian media didn’t help his case, either. A number of publications, as well as the toxic world of the internet, had readily dubbed Endrick ‘the new Pele’, a notion that he was quick to reject.
“Sometimes I ask myself: Why are there so many stories about me?” Endrick said in an interview with GQ in Brazil. “I didn’t ask for this. There are situations that cross a line. ‘Ah, he’s the new Pele.’ Man, nobody is going to be Pele, he’s the king of football.”
But his performances soon picked up. Endrick’s goal drought extended to 12 games, but April represented something of a turning point. He was slowly phased back into the side by Ferreira, and rewarded the manager’s patience with a series of solid performances to open the campaign. He bagged three in his first four games, and scored the first goal of the Serie A season with a neat finish.
More impressive, though, was the return of his confidence. Of particular note was an impressive run and shimmy through the Agua Santa defence in the Paulista Championship Final – a brief moment that showed, if nothing else, that there was still a great player in there.
Still, there were ongoing issues. Endrick clashed with his own club as they refused to release him for the U20 World Cup despite the striker’s public request to join the Selecao for the tournament in Argentina.
Fellow starlet, and soon-to-be Barcelona player, Vitor Roque was also denied the chance by his club. The duo figured to be crucial to the Brazilian cause in the tournament, just a few months removed from their win of the U20 Copa America. Brazil won their group, but went out in the quarter-final to Israel.
It was perhaps expected that a teenager would undergo cold spells. And it inevitably happened again. After a strong start to the season, the goals dried up. Endrick endured another difficult run over the summer, going scoreless in 12 straight games, failing to find the back of the net for two months after bagging a crucial equaliser against Roque’s Athletico Paranaense in early July.
The manager effectively lost faith in Endrick entirely, keeping him on the bench on five separate occasions over the summer.
Opportunities would soon arrive, though – if only out of necessity. Striker Dudu, who had provided 10 goal contributions for the reigning league champs, sustained a serious knee injury in August.
That left space for Endrick to work his way back into the side – and onto the scoresheet. He was, accordingly, brought off the bench against Corinthians on September 3, and made a solid impact, creating a number of opportunities as his side pushed for a winner.
But it wasn’t his dribbling in the final third or incisive passes that marked his showing. Instead, the game will be remembered for a dangerous challenge that could have seriously impacted his career.
In the 92nd minute, Corinthians defender Maycon de Andrade Barberan went studs up into Endrick’s knee, leaving the teenager screaming in pain. Madrid will undoubtedly be relieved to learn that their top recruit sustained no serious damage. But it could have been the culmination of a tumultuous campaign.
www.focusmagazineonline.com (September 2023)
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