Maybe you don't know how you do it, but you do it: everything he touches, he turns into gold. He is the Midas of Real Madrid. Or at least, an applicant. An amazing case; worthy of study. It's Endrick. Bobbyfor the locker room, a nickname they gave him because in a recent interview he said that his childhood idols were Cristiano Ronaldo… and Bobby Charlton, who retired 31 years before he was born. Something doesn't fit. And the joke, since then, has been served. It is the responsibility of his companions. And the goals, of his. They fall out of his pockets. It's a gift. With his double against Celta, he has an average of one strike every 72'. It doesn't stop there. It is the third best ratio in Europe. In short… and perhaps without end. Bobby.
A missing footballer. to whom –not counting Deportiva Minera– Ancelotti had only given 12 minutes from Montilivi. And in between there have been two finals and challenges like the one in Bergamo. He has seen them all from the bench. Watching the time go by. Life. And listening to arguments that do not comfort. “There is a lot of talk about Endrickwhat if he has played little, what if I don't give him minutes… blah blah blah blah blah, But you have to think that he is a very young player, that he has to adapt, improve, learn and putting him in when the team is not doing well can be counterproductive.. Instead of helping you, it could hurt you. “I have to think about all these things,” he said. Ancelotti in December.
Touched by a wand
A month later, Endrick challenged that theory. Against Celta, despite going 2-0, they had to live one of those delicate moments. With the injured team and looking over the precipice. Of tension and nerves. Of violins Psychosis. And far from becoming small, he took a step forward. His was the whip with his left foot that made it 3-2, help through Moriba who touched her just enough for the parable to be perfect. And his was the backheel in stoppage time to make it 5-2 and seal the match. Again y again. Jake dies. “In neither of the two was I looking at the goal”he said in a mixed zone. And that's the summary. A player with an angel. That maybe he doesn't even know how he does it, or maybe he does; but it does. It comes out. He has a goal.
Invisible
There are already four this season. With the recent double, he has taken a leap in Valdebebas' career and He is already the team's sixth scorerin the wake of the Fantastic Four and behind the wings of Hawk. Another dimension. But the merit is not so much that it is there, but that it is there with so little. Endrick just accumulates 291′ this season, of which 90' were against Deportiva Minera. And 41', if that weren't enough, against Celta. That is, without the Cup, he has only played 160 minutes this season. And there are 32 games. In Liga It's not even enough for a complete match: 82′. and in Championseven less: 78′. Endrick is residual at Real Madrid. It's reality. Of the first team, only Vallejo has played less (10′). But this is precisely its virtue.
European bronze
With this panorama, add a poker. The average is spectacular: marks every 72′. To put the figure in perspective, Mbappé is scoring a goal every 147' and Vinicius, every 140'. It's amazing. Reflection of a footballer who barely plays; but when he does it and touches a ball, things happen. Aura of gift. Endrick has the third best scoring average in all of Europe, only surpassed by Patrik Schick (67′, Bayer Leverkusen) y Keke Topp (62', Werder Bremen). This study, carried out by Opta, has been done taking into account players who have scored a minimum of four goals.
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Of tears…
Which are what Endrick adds, who also made blood against Valladolid (his official debut) y Stuttgart (his debut in the Champions League). A child with aura. The one who cried with emotion during his presentation. “When I was little I dreamed of playing for Real Madrid… and I'm going to do it”he said with a broken voice, before 45,000 people and on his sixth day of adulthood. This is how the story began. And so it goes now. They have been months of a lot of psychological work. Not understanding why he barely played, but not giving up. “Rüdiger tells me to keep working hard, even if I'm not playing”he acknowledged after the game. “Ancelotti knows that he doesn't have to look for the best for Endrick, but for the team”he added.
…to sweat
His relationship with the coach is cold. But professional. “I don't talk to him much misterbut on the first day he already told me that the most important thing here is to work… and he knows that I am doing it every day. I thank him, because he has been a great person for me,” he concluded. And he left the Bernabéu. With a serious face, that's who he is. But in the soul, that of “I love it when plans turn out well.” The third striker with the best average in Europe headed through the door. The protagonist of a case worthy of study. The hero of the Cup. The one who scores every 72', despite so much. Maybe he doesn't know how he does it, but he turns everything he touches into gold. Endrick goes goal per hour. With all of you, the Midas of Real Madrid. Bobby.
