What’s Real Madrid’s plan for new signing Endrick?

Endrick Felipe, who was unveiled as a new Real Madrid player on Saturday, has cut short his summer holidays as he looks to prove himself to Los Blancos’ head coach, Carlo Ancelotti, as quickly as possible.

Can Endrick secure a place in Madrid’s team?

Signed from Palmeiras for an initial €35 million fee, Endrick took part in his first Madrid training session on Sunday, having already been busy doing individual fitness work in the days prior to his presentation. His eagerness to hit the ground running at Madrid comes as little surprise, given the Brazilian will be battling for game time with a star-studded list of forwards: Vinícius Júnior, Kylian Mbappé, Rodrygo Goes, Brahim Díaz, Arda Güler…

Ancelotti and Pintus get to work on Endrick

Despite the stiff competition for places that he faces, however, Endrick has extreme faith in his abilities and is confident he can force his way into the team once the season kicks off. Before then, Ancelotti will run the rule over the 18-year-old, both at Madrid’s Valdebebas training ground and on the 15-time European champions’ summer tour of the US. Ahead of Stateside friendlies against AC Milan, Barcelona and Chelsea, Madrid’s squad flew out to America after training on Sunday - and Endrick is set to be one of the major attractions of the tour.

Alongside Ancelotti, the other key figure in Endrick’s acclimatisation to life at Madrid will be the club’s fitness coach, Antonio Pintus. The Italian will now set about getting the most out of a potent physique that is uncommon for a player of Endrick’s young age.

Watch - Madrid’s Endrick euphoria:

Endrick arrival not a Vini, Rodrygo scenario

While Endrick is certainly not the first teenaged Brazilian to be bought by Madrid in recent years, he is a different proposition altogether to the likes of Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo Goes, whose careers were not as far along when they arrived at the Bernabéu. Indeed, Endrick is already a two-time Brazilian league winner and a regular in the Brazil national team, having gone to this summer’s Copa América with the Seleçao. In March international friendlies, he impressed in high-profile friendlies against England and Spain, scoring in both clashes. His goal at London’s Wembley Stadium saw him become the youngest ever scorer in a men’s international match at the historic arena.

Unlike previous young recruits, therefore, Endrick won’t have to begin life at Madrid with Castilla, the club’s ‘B’ team. He’ll go straight into the first-team squad.

Endrick out to avoid Roque struggles

And he is determined to avoid the struggles endured by compatriot Vitor Roque, who has been a fringe figure since joining Madrid’s arch rivals, Barcelona, in a €40 million deal in January. The 19-year-old forward has been limited to just 353 minutes of action in his first six months in Catalonia, and has not been given a squad number for next season by Barça’s new head coach, Hansi Flick. Vitor Roque is currently training with Barça’s youth team, with the club working to offload the forward as soon as possible.