Trouble brewing at Real Madrid as Carlo Ancelotti and Raul at loggerheads over promising youngster

According to MARCA, a growing controversy surrounds young goalkeeper Fran Gonzalez at Real Madrid. Initially part of the club’s strategic plan, the 19-year-old was expected to split duties between the first team, where he is Carlo Ancelotti’s third-choice goalkeeper behind Thibaut Courtois and Andriy Lunin, and Castilla, where he started the season as the No. 1.

However, he has not played for Castilla since December 22, with coach Raul instead favoring Diego Pineiro and later Mario de Luis, a goalkeeper who was not in Madrid’s plans last summer and whose contract expires in June.

Gonzalez’s absence began when he missed a match due to Spanish Super Cup duties. Despite later becoming available, Raul continued to exclude him, citing a lack of continuity. The first team tried reintegrating Gonzalez with the reserves by excluding him from Champions League and LaLiga squads and calling up Sergio Mestre in his place, but this move failed to restore his starting role.

Until December, Gonzalez had started in 14 out of Castilla's 18 games, but he has since become a peripheral figure under Raul, which has begun to bother the Real Madrid hierarchy, given that they do not want the youngster's development to halt.

With Castilla on a seven-game unbeaten run, including five wins and two draws, Raul has little motivation to change his approach. De Luis has delivered strong performances, keeping two clean sheets and conceding just two goals. This has heightened tensions, leading Ancelotti to reinstate Gonzalez as Madrid’s third-choice keeper against Girona, removing him from Castilla’s setup.

Gonzalez will be expected to appear in Ancelotti's squad list for Real Madrid's upcoming game against Real Sociedad, which is the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final. However, it remains unlikely that the teenage custodian will be anything more than a spectator from the bench.