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It’s a weird time to be Endrick. The immensely talented Brazilian was supposed to be part of a new era in Real Madrid, but instead finds himself in complete limbo. He hasn’t played for five months, and everything suggests that he probably should have left over the summer. Injuries and a reluctance from the manager to play him have resulted in successive games sat on the bench, and now the 19-year-old faces a huge decision on his future.

But Endrick has the No. 9 shirt now. This seems like a good thing. After all, when a footballer is handed a jersey of such prestige, they tend to be doing something right. It implies a certain amount of faith, a backing from higher-ups. In other words, Madrid supposedly trust him.

Well, that’s all very nice and symbolic, but the actual footballing reality is wildly different. It has been over 150 days since Endrick last kicked a ball in a competitive game. There was plenty of hype when he was signed, and that will remain. Endrick is 19, an immense talent, and has shown, in brief spells, that he can be a game-changing attacking presence.

Yet he remains flawed; Endrick isn’t particularly tall. He also isn’t a great fit in Xabi Alonso’s system. And with plentiful talk of a loan move that could take him away from Madrid, it’s hard to envisage a future for him at the club. There are, every so often, now or never moments for a footballer. Endrick feels like he’s right on the precipice of one. An exit in January might be the only way to salvage his budding career.

A worthy move

Madrid signing Endrick, at the time, felt right. It was one of those high-profile chases for a Brazilian child superstar — a bit of a throwback in that sense. Everyone was supposedly in for his signature: Barcelona, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool were all mentioned.

But him going to Real was needed. Barca had pipped them to a few Brazilian talents over the years – not least Neymar – and Los Blancos needed one of their own. All of the pieces were in place for success, too. The transfer fee €60 million (£52m/$64m) was massive, but so was his potential. Endrick might have been 16, but it was impossible not to get excited about the player he might become. Playing at Palmeiras, it was assumed, would only toughen him up. He had 18 months to grow into his body, get used to being clattered, and arrive in the Spanish capital battle-hardened.

And the hype was tangible; in 2023, Endrick did a high-profile tour of Madrid’s training ground before making his move official. Los Blancos pushed it all over their social media. Here was Endrick, hugging Carlo Ancelotti. There was Endrick, bro-hugging Jude Bellingham while the England international called him a superstar. This just reeked of success.

The right fit?

But there were some reasons for caution. When Madrid signed Endrick in 2022, they were slightly in between eras up front. Karim Benzema might have won the Ballon d’Or a few months before, but he picked up a number of injuries, and when he was available, his levels dropped rapidly. Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo were both immense talents, but neither was a striker. That season, Barcelona regained the league title under Xavi.

There were options on the transfer market; Madrid can get pretty much whoever they want. They went for Bellingham after a long, drawn-out transfer saga. The Englishman was sublime, and enjoyed a memorable debut campaign — helping carry Los Blancos to a La Liga and Champions League double in 2024. And while Joselu became a cult hero that year, Madrid still needed a young forward. Endrick figured to be that guy.

But it became very clear, very quickly, that they would be signing Kylian Mbappe at the end of the 2023-24 campaign. He would be the undisputed main man, loosely playing as a No.9 and serving as the focal point of an hugely imbalanced attack. Where was the room for the Brazilian talent?

Tough time in Brazil

While Madrid pieced together their new-look side, Endrick was having a miserable time in the background. What was so quickly lost in the rush of excitement around his signing was the fact that Endrick was not yet 18. Neymar may have torn up the Brazilian Serie A, but it is an often unforgiving league for younger players, defined by its physicality and hard-nosed nature. This is not always a place for a future Madrid kid to cut his teeth.

So it proved. Endrick was in and out of the Palmeiras XI. He scored a few goals, and enjoyed some promising runs here and there, but was otherwise a bit-part player. He managed 11 goals in 1,600 minutes in the league — a fine return for a teenager, but hardly Madrid-esque numbers. The cameras were never off him, either, and when he was pictured crying on the bench, the Spanish media was quick to strike.

His manager effectively admitted that he should have been more forgiving after the match. “Yes, it’s true, he covered his face because he cried. I’m not his father, but I should have given him a hug,” Abel Ferreira said. “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.”

Mixed debut season

Madrid is a hard place to reset. There’s no room for error there. Miss a few chances, struggle to find the net, and you’re quickly written off. Endrick could not afford the kind of double-digit goalless streak he endured at Palmeiras. And the early days were a bit mixed. He was full of energy and clinical in front of goal, but he never quite settled into the side and was mostly a used as a Copa del Rey rotation option.

Yet the stats, in context, were reasonable. He made 37 appearances in all competitions, and bagged seven goals. He contributed to more goals per 90 minutes than Rodrygo and Vinicius in their respective debut seasons at the club. Ancelotti is famously reluctant to give youngsters a chance. Arda Guler — a similarly impressive talent who has come into his own under Alonso – was told that he should be prepared to “warm the bench” as others got their chance.

That made sense, in some ways. Mbappe was the main man. Vinicius was fighting for minutes. Throw in an already-phased-out Rodrygo, and it was tough to see where the minutes would come from for Endrick.

And then, there was an injury. The last game of the season was a dead-rubber. Endrick started up front with Mbappe, and had to be withdrawn with a leg injury. Subsequent scans revealed a hamstring problem – ruling him out for the Club World Cup where he was expected to make an impact.

Frozen out under Alonso

That was unfortunate, not least because Alonso made it clear from day one of the tournament that he was unafraid to rotate. He was confronted by a litany of fitness problems, as well as the issue of trying to force numerous new signings into the side. Mbappe was sidelined with a stomach bug, so Alonso played academy striker Gonzalo Garcia up front. He went on to win the Golden Boot, bagging four goals.

Endrick responded by flying out to Miami to train with the rest of the Madrid side. But he almost immediately reaggravated that same injury. And then, it all got a bit bleak. Transfer talk started to swirl. There were rumours of a loan move, as well as scattered reports of his interest in a permanent exit from the Bernabeu. That, admittedly, would have made some sense. Gonzalo had pushed him out of the side. This team isn’t an easy one to walk back into.

It didn’t help that Endrick really isn’t Alonso’s kind of player. The Spaniard prefers two creative wide men and a physical striker willing to play centrally. Joselu, ironically, seemed a perfect fit. Endrick is not.

What next?

And so we face an uncertain future. Holding the No. 9 shirt is, of course, a good thing. That represents real trust in the Brazilian. You don’t give that kit to someone who is going to languish forever.

He has returned to the matchday squad, too, and been an unused substitute for five straight games in all competitions as Alonso continues to try to find his ideal forward combinations. A Brazil return seems unlikely, too, as Ancelotti left him at home for the pair of friendlies against South Korea and Japan (although that is hardly surprising given Endrick’s lack of minutes at club level).

The talk from the club itself is that of confidence. They believe that Endrick’s chance will come, and that he just needs to work his way back into the side, and take advantage of the chances he gets. And that’s probably true. It must be acknowledged, too, that he is still just 19. Yet that brings up the inverse issue: Endrick is 19. He probably shouldn’t be sitting on a bench. Five months is a long time without kicking a football. Perhaps it’s time for him to consider pastures new to get his career back on track.

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