The only thing Brazil produces more prodigiously than football wunderkinds is probably coffee.
Brazil’s illustrious genealogy of young footballing talents, which spans from Pele in the 1950s to Ronaldo Nazario in the 90s to Neymar in the 2010s, has its latest offering - Endrick.
The 17-year-old forward offered a glimpse of his yet-to-be-fully tapped goalscoring skills, when he found the net twice for Brazil in the recent set of international friendlies.
The first was a late winner – a scrappy tap-in – at Wembley against England. The second was a left-footed piledriver from the edge of the box against Spain at the Bernabeu, his soon-to-be home ground.
Is it a fly, is it a plane? Endrick delivers a bullet of a shot to score his second goal for Brazil in an international friendly against Spain. | Photo Credit: REUTERS
It all started for Endrick in the junior divisions of Brazilian football with Palemiras where the forward scored goals by the truckload. The youngster was soon thrown into the deep end of professional football, at the ripe age of 16, becoming the youngest player to appear for the Palmeiras’ senior team.
Within months, Real Madrid – which has been signing Brazilian prodigies with vengeance after missing out on Neymar to Barcelona in 2013 – stitched up a contract to make Endrick a Los Blancoby July 2024 for a reported USD 50 million.
To make it better for Madrid, Endrick chose the Spanish capital side over Barcelona, whose manager Xavi had marked the Brazilian teenager as one for the future.
“He has great finishing, dribbling and capacity to make a difference on the pitch. He is a player already of the present - playing in the Brazilian league - and also the future,” said Xavi before Endrick elected the white side of the El Clasico rivalry.
Despite the spotlight magnifying on him manifold, Endrick kept doing what he does best - score goals.
In the 2023 Brazilian Serie A league, Endrick led the line for Palmeiras in its title win, scoring 11 goals, despite starting just 18 games. His goals/90 (0.64) was the best in the league for any player with more than five goals.
RELATED: Pele’s Santos relegated for first time in 111 years, Palmeiras Brazil Serie A champion
Only one under-18 player has ever scored more goals in a season in the Brazilian league - Ronaldo Nazario.
“I think he is a boy with a very promising future and that he is already acting as a professional,” proclaimed Ronaldo, as he vouched for Endrick to be drafted into the 2022 Brazil World Cup team, which eventually didn’t happen.
It is inevitable for any up-and-coming Brazilian footballer to be compared with Ronaldo, Neymar and others. To draw the lines of mystical connections between players of the past and the potential vision of a yet-to-be fully-developed talent is an exercise fraught with danger.
Destined for greatness: Endrick celebrates winning the Brazilian Championship with Palmeiras, beating Cruzeiro at Minerao stadium in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. | Photo Credit: DOUGLAS MAGNO
Endrick though has grown accustomed to the glare of footballing popularity which he has bequeathed.
“I was angry because I wanted to show them [critics] who I was. I tried to counter the criticism and show who I am. But then I understood that I didn’t need to prove it, I didn’t need to show the opposite. If they want to insult me, I won’t see it. Criticism doesn’t hurt me anymore,” said Endrick in an interview with the Guardian.
Closer to Ronaldo than Neymar
If one can use a broad brush of categorisation for the style of play, Endrick is closer to Ronaldo than Neymar.
Though adept with the ball, the left-footed Endrick prefers goalscoring over ball-carrying. In the 2023 Serie A season, the Brazilian youngster attempted just 4.28 take-ons/90 minutes with a success rate of 45.9 %.
In comparison, Endrick’s compatriot and soon-to-be club teammate Vinicius Junior – the last Brazilian wonder kid who made it big – has attempted 8.82 take-ons/90 mins in the ongoing La Liga season.
Endrick also prefers to play centrally, often slotting in as a sole striker or as a withdrawn one. Over the last two seasons, he has shown his ability to consistently be at the right place to pounce on the rebounds and half-chances, much like the one he gobbled up against England in Wembley.
The 17-year-old also has a stirring long shot in his locker with three of his 11 goals for Palmeiras in the 2023 Serie A season coming from outside the box. The best of the three was a 25-yard grounded sizzler which he scored against Internacional.
Despite being just 1.73m tall, Endrick is a handy customer in the air. He wins 0.81 aerial duels/90 mins – with a success rate of 28% – which towers over Vinicius’ number of 0.06 aerial duels/90 mins.
Where does he fit in at Real Madrid?
Much like in the past, Real Madrid has created itself a problem of plenty. The addition of Endrick means Carlo Ancelotti’s side now has three supremely talented Brazilian attackers, with Vinicius and Rodrygo being the other two.
Compatriots to club teammates: Endrick will re-unite with Vinicius Junior at Real Madrid, who has established himself as a first-team regular. | Photo Credit: REUTERS
With Endrick’s inability to play down the left and Vinicius’ undroppable stature, Rodrygo will likely be the direct competitor for the Brazilian newcomer for a spot in the lineup. And with England prodigy Jude Bellingham offering a regular goal-scoring outlet from the midfield, it seems unlikely that Ancelotti will opt to play all three of his Brazilian attackers.
ALSO READ: Brazil boss predicts big things for teenager Endrick after England win
To top it up, Madrid is ever so close to ending its seemingly endless pursuit of French goal-scoring freak Kylian Mbappe from Paris Saint-Germain. This could push Endrick further down the pecking order, compromising his playing time.
Endrick, and his legions of supporters, though will take solace in Ancelotti’s man-management skill which has prompted the blossoming of several young talents in the side in recent years.
For all its celebrated lineage, Brazil’s wunderkind outlet has its share of hit-and-misses. The cases of Alexandro Pato, Ganso and Robinho are just a few of the many who faded away after promising so much.
Endrick’s destiny is unknown, his future tangent on many elements, some out of his control. But if there is anything better than envisaging what could have been, it is foreseeing the possibility of what would be.
Comments
SHARE