It’s a situation no Real Madrid fan wants to see unfold — one of the club’s most exciting young talents on the verge of walking out the door again. According to reports, Brazilian striker Endrick is seriously contemplating pushing for a January transfer away from the Bernabéu, and when you look at the numbers, it’s hard to blame him.
What’s Going On
The source of Endrick’s frustration is simple: he’s barely played. After suffering an early injury setback this season, the 18-year-old has managed a grand total of four minutes of pitch time under José Mourinho. Four minutes. For a player of his talent and ambition, that’s an incredibly difficult reality to swallow.
The centre-forward pecking order at the club right now is brutal. Kylian Mbappé is the undisputed first-choice striker — that’s no surprise — but Endrick now appears to sit third in the queue, behind summer signing Carlos Espí as well. Being third-choice at any club is tough. Being third-choice at Real Madrid, where squad rotation is often minimal and elite players dominate minutes, makes it feel almost impossible to break through.
Spanish outlet Marca have reported the situation directly: “The Brazilian has barely played for Real Madrid this season and, as the calendar progresses, he’s once again eyeing a move in the winter transfer window. Roma, who nearly signed him last summer, have re-emerged as a potential destination.” The Italian capital club were close to landing Endrick before, which means there’s already an established interest — this isn’t a cold inquiry, it’s a rekindled one.
Why This Hurts — But Also Makes Sense
Here’s the context that makes this story sting a little more for Madridistas. Endrick didn’t spend the back half of last season sitting idle — he went out and proved himself in emphatic fashion. On loan at Olympique Lyonnais in France, the young Brazilian delivered 16 direct goal contributions in just 21 appearances. That’s a remarkable return for any player, let alone a teenager adjusting to a new league, a new country, and a new language. The expectation heading into this season was that he’d come back to Madrid ready to claim a genuine role in the squad. That hasn’t happened.
From a purely footballing perspective, a second loan makes a lot of sense for Endrick’s development. At 18, he needs minutes more than anything else. Sitting in the stands — or on the bench for the rare few seconds he’s seen so far — does nothing for his growth as a player. A competitive loan, particularly one with a club like Roma who are clearly keen on him, could give him the platform he needs to continue developing at pace.
That said, from a fan’s perspective, it’s genuinely frustrating to watch a player with Endrick’s potential feel forced out of the club. Real Madrid signed him as one of the most hyped young strikers in South American football, and the vision was always that he’d eventually become a pillar of the team’s future. Every loan spell delays that timeline a little further.
What Happens Next
The January window is still a few months away, but this story will only gather momentum if Endrick’s minutes don’t improve. Mourinho will no doubt be aware of the situation — keeping a player of Endrick’s quality unhappy and disengaged serves nobody. Whether the manager finds a way to integrate him into the squad more meaningfully, or whether the club decides another temporary exit is the most logical path, remains to be seen.
For now, all eyes will be on how much Endrick features in the coming weeks. If those four minutes remain his total contribution as November and December roll around, a January departure starts to look less like a possibility and more like an inevitability. Real Madrid fans will be hoping it doesn’t come to that — but the clock is ticking for everyone involved.
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