Real Madrid News
Real Madrid first-team staff closely monitoring Castilla striker’s development
While Carlo Ancelotti is immensely respected for what he has achieved at Real Madrid, one complaint that some fans have against the Italian is his reluctance to hand opportunities to youngsters from within the club.
Prospects like Sergio Arribas, Rafa Marin, Vinicius Tobias, Mario Martin, Iker Bravo, and Nico Paz, among others, have been performing exceptionally well for Castilla and the youth teams.
However, they have not received many opportunities at the first-team level even when there have been injuries leading to reduced depth within the squad.
But, one player who seems to be generating excitement within the first-team staff is Castilla striker Alvaro Rodriguez.
Indeed, according to AS, the senior team coaching staff has been closely following the progress and development of the 18-year-old striker.
Rodriguez joined Real Madrid from Girona’s youth setup in 2020 and has made steady progress through the ranks. The teenage forward has netted five goals in 15 matches for Castilla under Raul Gonzalez this season.
The Uruguayan striker even made his first-team debut earlier this month, coming on as a substitute against Cacereno in the Copa del Rey.
Currently, Rodriguez is away representing the Uruguayan national team at the South American U-20 Championship in Colombia, and his performances at the tournament have been raising a lot of heads.
After getting an assist in Uruguay U-20’s first game against Chile, the Real Madrid youngster netted a hat-trick in the 4-1 win over Bolivia in their latest encounter.
So, it should not come as a surprise that the first-team staff at the club has taken a major interest in Rodriguez’s progression and development.
Given that Ancelotti does not have a lot of cover in the No. 9 position behind Karim Benzema, Rodriguez might get a chance to add to his solitary appearance for the senior team in the second half of the season.
There is no way back for Eden Hazard at Real Madrid. The Belgian international has not given the management any reason to have faith in his abilities over his past four seasons at the club and is unsurprisingly the most important departure for the Merengues in the summer.
Hazard has one more year on his contract in Madrid. However, it is clear that Carlo Ancelotti does not trust him and that any potential replacement manager in the summer will echo his stance.
According to reports from Mundo Deportivo, Fenerbahce are willing to go all out to sign Hazard this summer. The Turkish side have made the former Chelsea their prime target, yet face a steep task ahead of them.
The 32-year-old is hellbent on seeing out his contract with Los Blancos despite seeing his career sink right before his eyes. It thus becomes complicated for the party to lure away the forward, especially in a competition outside Europe’s top five leagues.
Fenerbahce attempted to sign the winger in the recently concluded winter transfer market. They reached an agreement with Real Madrid but failed to get over the line as they could not convince the player of the move.
The biggest obstacle for the Turkish side will be convincing Hazard to make the move by letting go of his lucrative contract in Madrid. The chances are slim, but not impossible.
Hazard has made just three league appearances and one start for Ancelotti’s side this season in La Liga, a steep fall from last season’s 18 and seven respectively.
His last appearance for the team came back in January when Real Madrid faced Cacereno in the Copa del Rey. In La Liga however, he last played in September 2022 in a 4-1 win over Mallorca.
