Brazilian forward Rodrygo Goes is looking to follow in the footsteps of his good friend and teammate Vinícius Júnior in his first season with Real Madrid. However, the non-European Union regulation implemented by the Spanish football federation could put those dreams on hold for at least this year.
The RFEF is very serious when it comes to making sure Spain and European nations are prioritized over any other continent or country in the world. La Liga prides itself on having a plethora of Spanish nationals on all 20 teams in the top flight and allows just three non-European players to register per season.
Real Madrid’s recent obsession with Brazilian players could come back to haunt them very soon and hurt the chances of a couple of young players in the process. As it stands right now ahead of any preseason matches, Real Madrid have already designated both Vinícius and Eder Militao as non-EU players.
The third is more than likely to be Fede Valverde who has not been loaned out and did well to impress Zinedine Zidane at the end of last season.
The problem that now arises from this situation is that both Takefusa Kubo and Rodrygo Goes are all but certain to be Castilla players for the entire season and will see zero minutes of first-team action in any competitive matches.
Despite impressing during the first week of training in Montreal, Canada, Real Madrid has made it abundantly clear that Kubo is destined to be a key part of Raul Gonzalez’s Castilla team for at least this season and maybe next season. Remember, the Japanese playmaker is just 18-years-old and has recently joined on a long-term deal.
Rodrygo, on the other hand, has been on the fence for experts around the world as to whether or not he will see playing time under Zizou. No matter what he does now, his future lies in the hands of both the coaching staff and Valverde.
Having been with the club since 2016, Fede Valverde can now legally become a Spanish citizen. The Uruguayan midfielder was supposed to have gone through the process and received his Spanish passport earlier this summer, but, delays have arisen.
This now leaves Real Madrid in a bit of a conundrum as to what to do. Do they loan out Valverde? Do they wait for him to become a Spanish citizen and then register Rodrygo? Or, do they decide to leave Rodrygo with Raul for the time being?
“It could come in September, because everything is under control,” a representative from the club said, but that would come after the registration period for squads is over, leaving Rodrygo without first-team football for an entire season.
Let’s keep our fingers crossed the logistics with Valverde’s passport get worked out soon so Rodrygo at least has a shot to show the fans what he can do against elite competition.