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It has been 15 months since Endrick decided to sign for Real Madrid, snubbing various other European giants in the process including Barcelona.
Although his move to Santiago Bernabeu won’t come to fruition until the summer of 2024, when he turns 18, the youngster has generated a lot of excitement in the Real Madrid camp.
Endrick’s future, though, could have panned out very differently. As mentioned earlier, Barcelona were quite serious about signing the Palmeiras whizkid, with Xavi even opening the door for the then-15-year-old to join the club.
Endrick, of course, had other ideas. In fact, his agent Frederico Pena has revealed some key insights into Endrick’s transfer about 15 months back.
Real Madrid did not want to lose ‘another Neymar’
In a recent interview, Pena revealed that Real Madrid did not want to miss out on another Neymar and that is why they were determined to sign someone like Endrick.
“Real Madrid decided that they were never going to let another talent like Neymar escape to Barça and that’s why they went ahead with Vinicius or Endrick,” Pena said (h/t Mundo Deportivo).
The agent also confirmed Endrick was courted by other Premier League clubs.
“After an incredible performance at the Sao Paulo U-20 Youth Football Cup in Brazil, the world really took notice of Endrick’s potential.
“People in football already knew about him, but that was when all the big clubs came in: Manchester City, Liverpool, PSG, Chelsea and, of course, Real Madrid,” he added.
Endrick was close to joining Chelsea
In addition, Pena said that Endrick was extremely close to joining Chelsea football club. Had Chelsea not reconsidered the player’s price tag at the very last minute, he may have even signed with the Blues. However, Chelsea’s decision prevented him from doing so.
“Chelsea was in the forefront of the whole transaction from the very beginning. “The boy’s parents went to Cobham and were impressed by the club, but Chelsea were concerned about the fee, and then when Real came in and were willing to pay what Palmeiras wanted, it became almost impossible for them to acquire the player,” he said.
Pena said, “Perhaps Chelsea have learned their lesson,” and he pointed out that Endrick’s father had always wished for his son to be successful at Real Madrid.
“Being a football player and playing for Real Madrid was the only thing that his father wanted for him, so that was a dream for him,” the man said. He also said that “Vini” was able to communicate to him, share with him his own experiences, and provide him with some assurances throughout their conversation.
At the end of the day, Real Madrid was able to acquire Endrick in December of 2022 for an initial payment of around €35 million.Under some circumstances, however, Los Blancos may end up paying as much as twenty-five million euros.
