Real Madrid have termed it a “Revolution”, and it does indeed seem like one with the amount of young talent in the upcoming season’s expected squad.
Even if Martin Odegaard spends the 2020-2021 season on loan at Real Sociedad, honoring the final year of his loan agreement, Real Madrid will still have a staggering amount of young talent in the squad next season.
It all starts with 2019-2020 breakout star Fede Valverde, whose lung-busting runs and relentless defending have made him a fan favorite in the middle of the park. Valverde can already lay claim to being a Man of the Match winner in Derbis and Clasicos, showing no signs of youth or inexperience on the brightest stage.
The same can be said about left winger Vinicius Junior, whose confidence at the end of the 2019-2020 season was astonishing. Here was a teenager taking it to the very best defenders in the world, showing no mercy against either Atletico Madrid’s back four or Barcelona. Vinicius has been tabbed as a future Ballon d’Or winner, and when he carries the ball into the final third, it’s easy to see why. On his day, he is unstoppable.
And hopefully, Rodrygo Goes will join him on the opposite flank. Rodrygo had some magical moments in the first half of the season, including the second-fastest debut goal in Real Madrid history – behind only the legendary No. 9 himself, Ronaldo. And then, Rodrygo had a perfect hat-trick against Galatasaray to foreshadow his future superstardom. Zinedine Zidane and the club are taking things slow with Rodrygo and new attacking midfielder Reinier Jesus in Castilla, just as they once did with Vinicius. But as Vinicius’ performance in the second-half of the season showed, this approach will prove dividends.
Even striker Luka Jovic is a young player to watch closely. As much as the rumor mill loves to churn, Real Madrid won’t give up on a striker they spent more than 50 million euros on any time soon. Jovic showed his quality in bits and pieces last season, memorably assisting Casemiro’s winner against Sevilla with an ingenious backheel.
The rest – and perhaps best – of Real Madrid’s young core lies in defense. Fullbacks Achraf Hakimi and Sergio Reguilon were the best players at their respective positions in their leagues last season. They will return to Los Blancos in 2020-2021 as regulars in the lineup, with Hakimi potentially providing an option to replace Gareth Bale in the attack after producing 10 assists in the Bundesliga.
Meanwhile, Ferland Mendy will take another step after a wonderful first season for Los Blancos, in which he established himself as a manager’s dream with his defensive work at the left back position. He has no comparison in La Liga as a defender at his position.
Finally, Eder Militao has, like Jovic, been the subject of transfer rumors linking him to a move away. But after Florentino Perez and Zidane signed him from FC Porto, the 50 million euro man has done nothing more than prove his value. He can be a future starter for Los Blancos whenever Sergio Ramos‘ time is done.
All of these players are on the cusp of being world-class or have world-class potential. And none of this discussion even includes other high-upside loanees like goalkeeper Andriy Lunin and Mallorca’s Takefusa Kubo.
Real Madrid may have the best young core of any team in Europe – not just La Liga. As we wait for football to return, Madridistas can gloat with how well their organization has done to identify and develop top young talent.