Over the recent years Real Madrid have seen a major transitional phase when it comes to their squad. The veterans are slowly making way for the next generation of players who are expected to lead the club for many years to come. Carlo Ancelotti's side deserve a lot of credit for remaining one of the best teams in Spain and Europe despite the challenging circumstances.
Legends such as Sergio Ramos, Marcelo and Karim Benzema have departed, to name a few. On the other hand, youngsters like Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni and Jude Bellingham have arrived, and are expected to be cornerstones of the club for the next decade or more.
One youngster whom Real Madrid have already agreed a deal for is Endrick. The player is currently still at Palmeiras in Brazil, and he will arrive in the Spanish capital next summer.
Endrick is already showing brilliant quality and the decision to sign him early is looking like a masterstroke. But it looks like he was on the verge of joining Chelsea before Real Madrid.
€60 million Real Madrid signing had agreed to join Chelsea
It looks like while a deal was not signed, it had been agreed with Chelsea. As reported by The Guardian, Endrick's father, Douglas, said:
"So we received an invitation from Chelsea, from the owner, and we went there to see the club and the country. We watched Chelsea play Arsenal and we got to see the coach, the facilities, Jorginho, César Azpilicueta and Thiago Silva.
“They explained everything to us. They introduced us to the person who would help us settle in. She showed us the house we would live in, the school Endrick would go to, the church we would attend. Everything was right with us and Chelsea.
“I can’t say 100% because I hadn’t signed, but the deal was agreed. I had already got it into my head that I would live in London with all that cold weather. But then at night, my son’s manager phoned and said that the Chelsea owner had backed out of the deal because the price they would have to pay for Endrick would inflate the market. It was €60m [£51.4m] for a 16-year-old boy who would only arrive in the country almost two years later."
In the end, it wasn't meant to be for Endrick and Chelsea. That did open up the door for Real Madrid, who signed the Brazilian wonderkid for a transfer package believed to be around €60 million.
Real Madrid fans are eagerly awaiting Endrick's arrival next summer. He seems to have all the attributes to develop into a superstar at Santiago Bernabeu. He scored 11 goals in the recent Brazilian Serie A season. That saw him surpass Neymar's tally. Only Ronaldo Nazario has managed more before turning 18 years of age.
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