Endrick blasted for ‘theatrical stuff’ after rare start for Real Madrid - with Brazilian wonderkid being told to cut out the tricks

The Brazilian wonderkid has endured a testing debut campaign in European football. He arrived at Santiago Bernabeu with a reputation as being one of the hottest prospects on the planet, but still has much to learn at 18 years of age.

Endrick has taken in just 213 minutes of La Liga action this season, with 64 of those coming when being handed his first league start in a meeting with local rivals Getafe. The youngster drew a blank in that contest before being replaced by England international Jude Bellingham.

Endrick had opportunities to hit the net, with just one Liga goal to his name so far, but fluffed his lines. One effort saw him attempt to dink Getafe goalkeeper David Soria when he should have gone for power.

Ancelotti told reporters afterwards of the South American needing to favour substance over style: “Endrick had two good chances. For the first, I think he couldn’t have done much better. The second might have been offside but he has to learn from that. Young players need to strike the ball properly, not this theatrical stuff. Theatre in football doesn’t exist.”

There have been suggestions that Real may look to loan Endrick out in 2025-26 - allowing him to find the regular game time that his ongoing development needs - with Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo the go-to options in the Blancos’ attacking unit.