Endrick broke Raul’s 29-year-old record to become Real Madrid’s youngest ever starter in a Champions League match

The Brazilian teenager was named in Carlo Ancelotti’s squad for the ʂhock 1-0 defeat to Lille, aged just 18 years and 73 days.

In doing so, the young striker broke the previous record, held by club legend Raul. The iconic Spanish striker was just 18 years and 77 days old when he made his debut against Ajax in September 1995.

High expectations are being placed on Endrick, who joined Real Madrid in the summer after the club activated his £51m release clause from Brazilian club Palmeiras in December 2022.

Before Endrick started against Lille, he had come off the bench in eight previous games, with Vinicius Jr, Mbappe and Rodrygo favoured up front.

However, he impressed from his substitute appearances, scoring two goals and providing an assist.

Endrick marked his Champions League debut with a goal in the opening game of the competition. Just minutes after coming on against Stuttgart at the Bernabeu two weeks ago, he scored with a powerful low shot to seal a 3-1 win.

That goal saw Endrick make history at Real Madrid by becoming the youngest player to score in any international competition. Endrick also scored on his La Liga debut against Real Valladolid after just four minutes on the pitch.

His impressive performances have convinced Ancelotti that he deserves his first start in France. This has left Kylian Mbappe and Rodrygo on the bench, with Endrick leading the line alongside Vinicius Jr.

 

 

 

 

Ancelotti has recently urged Endrick to be patient in his quest for more playing time.

“On the one hand, yes, I’m probably being unfair, because he’s training very well; he’s a guy with a lot of quality. But in front of him there’s Vinicius, Rodrygo, Mbappe… so he needs to be a little patient,” he said.