Who is Thiago Pitarch, Real Madrid’s starting midfielder against Getafe in LaLiga?
Álvaro Arbeloa handed a start to the young midfielder for the game against Getafe.
In Jude Bellingham’s absence from the Real Madrid squad, head coach Álvaro Arbeloa handed a start to young midfield sensation Thiago Pitarch.
Getafe make the short trip north to the Bernabéu stadium for a local league clash to round-off match day 29 in the 2025-26 LaLiga season. Ahead of the game, doubts surrounded Arbeloa’s potential starting XI, with many names floated in place of Camavinga and Bellingham, both injured for the fixture.
Not many people expected the coach, previously head of the youth team, to go with Thiago, a young central midfielder from the academy.
The 18-year-old Pitarch is from Fuenlabrada, one of Madrid’s satellite towns in the southwest of the city boundaries, and has been called up to the senior squad this season a number of times due to the ongoing injury crisis in Madrid’s midfield, but now he will have his chance to star on the pitch as Madrid look to close the gap on FC Barcelona at the top of the table.
He played for the youth teams of Atlético Madrid, Getafe, and Leganés before making the move to Real Madrid, where he featured for the U17s, U19s, and Castilla, Real Madrid’s B team.
If you think you’ve seen him before, your eyes do not deceive you. The midfielder made his Madrid debut as a substitute in the final minute of the away leg in Portugal against Benfica on February 17 before coming on for fellow academy product Gonzalo García for the last six minutes of the return game, his first ever appearance at the Bernabéu.
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