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Why Real Madrid beat Chelsea and PSG to Endrick
This super talented young striker has become the fourth youngest player ever to play for the Brazilian national team, so Real Madrid will no doubt feel they’ve landed a real gem here, but it’s important to remember that other clubs also really wanted him.
It was back in November when Paris Saint-Germain presented a huge proposal to sign two players from Palmeiras. The bid was €93m for the two boys Endrick and Estevao – two kids, really, but two big talents. It was an important proposal, with the main part of the offer being around €58m for Endrick, and the rest for Estevao.
Endrick only wanted to go to Real Madrid, while Estevao is another top talent that Palmeiras will probably sell later, so a deal with PSG didn’t work out. There were other possibilities as well, however, as Chelsea, around one year ago, also tried to sign Endrick. People at the club were monitoring Endrick and they tried to approach the player’s side to convince him to join, even inviting his family to London to have the opportunity to get a feel for Chelsea’s project.
Still, Endrick’s dream was to play for Real Madrid, and the player’s wish is crucial in these situations – club preference always makes the difference. It was not about Chelsea, PSG or money – he simply wanted to go to Real Madrid and it was his only priority. Also, Real Madrid’s chief scout Juni Calafat’s work was crucial to make the deal happen in a key moment, and it’s fantastic news for the Spanish giants because they can see him now making history with the Brazilian national team.
How close was Warren Zaire-Emery to Manchester City?
Many of you have been asking me if there was really an opportunity for him to go to the Premier League. We know there have been links, but the reality is that Manchester City never made an official bid to Paris Saint-Germain – this was because they knew that he was considered untouchable for the club, and he is going to extend his contract with PSG very soon.
Another important detail is that Paris Saint-Germain wanted Bernardo Silva, and this is what led to rumours of a swap deal, but, again, they were never prepared to include Zaire-Emery in the negotiation. It was also a ‘no’ from Manchester City as they didn’t want to let Bernardo Silva go, and so the position of both clubs meant it could never go anywhere serious or concrete.
Updates on Jadon Sancho and Anthony Martial
I recently revealed that Juventus asked for information on Jadon Sancho as they consider a loan move for January, but I’m afraid fans asking me for updates since then are going to be disappointed because I don’t have anything just yet.
I don’t expect much to change very soon either because the key point with United right now is there will likely be changes to the board under Sir Jim Ratcliffe, so it will take some time to decide what to do. Juve are still there, though, waiting to understand the conditions of a potential January deal.
Anthony Martial is another player fans have been keen to understand more about ahead of January, and from what I’m told he remains part of the rotation under Erik ten Hag, he’s not out of the project. Martial, like some other player at United, remains on the same list: if they receive an important proposal, he could leave. Otherwise, they’re happy to keep him as part of rotations.
In other news…
Wilfried Gnonto – His departure from Leeds could be a possibility this January. He could leave but depends on the proposal and also negotiating with Leeds is never easy. Despite rumours, I have no confirmation of Tottenham links at this stage.
Malamine Efekele – I’ve had some fans ask me about Monaco wonderkid Malamine Efekele and links with Chelsea. He’s a very good and interesting talent, but I’m not aware of any concrete talk or link, at this stage. It’s just normal scouting activity by many top clubs, something very normal for talents like Efekele.