As football continues to grow on the grassroots level, teams get the chance to sign players early on in their careers in the hopes of discovering the ‘next big thing’ in the sport.
The likes of Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, for example, broke through earlier than Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. And the next player to sit on the throne will likely start making waves even earlier.
One of the early contenders for the throne is Brazilian prodigy Endrick. At 16, he already has the attention of the world, with the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid, among others interested in securing his signature as early as next season.
Recently, a report claiming that Endrick’s father had scheduled a trip to Madrid in the coming week was floating, but that has since seen revision.
“I did not give any interview, and I never spoke about any travel to Madrid in the coming weeks,” Endrick’s father said, as quoted by Fabrizio Romano. “There’s no travel scheduled as things stand.”
The reliable journalist also provides a huge blow to Barcelona, claiming that Real Madrid, PSG, and Chelsea are frontrunners for his signature.
Endrick has often been asked about his future in recent weeks, but has refused to give any suggestion. His father, too, has previously denied any pre-agreement or preference for Madrid:
“There’s nothing decided for Real Madrid or any other club. We’ve no preference yet. We’ll decide in the next months, the club that will pay what Palmeiras want and show us the best technical project for Endrick will sign the boy.”
As it stands, Barcelona will have to make step up their efforts for Endrick’s signature, otherwise, it seems that the Brazilian wonderkid is heading towards the Santiago Bernabeu.