The latest Brazilian wonderkid will be a Real Madrid player for the 2024/25 season after Endrick completes a reported €47.5m move from Palmeiras.
The agreement was reached way back in December 2022, but with the player not turning 18 until July 2024, Los Blancos fans have had to wait for the long-awaited Endrick Real Madrid debut.
His style of play has been compared to Brazilian legend Romario, and despite his young age, he has already featured 10 times for the national team, scoring three times. Amongst them was a goal at the Santiago Bernabeu in a friendly between Spain and Brazil back in March, which ended 3-3.
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Endrick Real Madrid debut: When it will happen
Endrick is likely to feature on Real Madrid’s pre-season tour of the United States and could potentially make his competitive debut in the UEFA Super Cup clash against Europa League winners Atalanta. That match is on August 14th at the National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland.
While he’s highly unlikely to start the game unless there are injuries, Endrick could get minutes off the bench. With fellow Real Madrid new signing Kylian Mbappe and Brazil teammates Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo having also been involved in international tournaments this summer, Carlo Ancelotti will most likely want to manage the workload of his forwards initially as they build up to match fitness again.
That should serve up some opportunities for Endrick who could be introduced as a central striker or wide forward in the Super Cup. If used on the right he may find himself up against Atalanta’s young wing-back Matteo Ruggeri while a central role could see a rougher introduction to European football against the physical Sead Kolasinac.
Will Endrick play alongside Kylian Mbappe?
Making space for Mbappe is going to be hard enough for Carlo Ancelotti, given how well the likes of Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham played last season.
The most likely solution may be a shift to a 4-2-3-1 system with Mbappe leading the line and Vinicius reverting to his more familiar left sided role, having largely been used centrally last term. With everyone fit, there isn’t really a natural place for Endrick in this Real Madrid eleven with the likes of Brahim Diaz and Arda Guler also making strong cases for selection in advanced areas.
Endrick may have to get used to warming the bench in his first season at Real Madrid whilst doing his best to impress whenever he gets the chance. His best shot at breaking into the side may be to compete with Rodrygo for the right sided attacking role.
When could Endrick make his first appearance in La Liga?
Endrick’s league debut for Real Madrid could potentially come just a few days after the Super Cup when Los Blancos travel to Mallorca on Sunday August 18th.
Mallorca have been quite a physical side over the past couple of years, typically playing with three central defenders and despite a change in coach this summer, it could still be another physical test for the young Brazilian should he feature.
It is possible that Ancelotti will opt to hold Endrick back, with a home game against Real Valladolid and midweek trip to Las Palmas following the Mallorca clash. Both of those are favourable fixtures that could be good opportunities to introduce the young Brazilian.
Real Madrid will be eager to give Endrick time to develop so it’s not imperative that he hits the ground running and it is worth remembering that Vinicius struggled to convince during his first few seasons at the Bernabeu, before exploding over the past three years.
