Endrick is a kid who has been in the spotlight in Brazil since he was 11 and has high expectations at 17. I have not been closely following football for very long, and this is the first time I see this. Is that common? Did this media circus happen with Ronaldo, Neymar, Messi, CR7 and other young talents in football who went on to be great? I guess I’m just fearful that this much pressure on a kid might mean he doesn’t match expectations, so i’m looking for some success stories that came from situations similar to his haha.
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He’s destined to Real Madrid, that on its own is a pressure, look at Arda Guler, everyone is waiting for him, if he was scouted by Real Betis, the hype would have died by now, look at the kid from Ajax to West Ham, he’s very good but the hype is dead around him.
For kids who are believed to be so promising, it is. And, yes, it creates a lot of pressure, not always in a positive way. Neymar, Vini Jr., Fat Ronaldo and Rodrygo, just to name a few Brazilians, faced the same treatment. They all became top tier footballers, but if you take Neymar, for example, you get a 32-year-old spoiled man-child. Ronaldo hat a breakdown hours away from the '98 final.
I don’t remember Ripped Ronaldo getting the same treatment, he was promising, yes, but I really have no memory of that. Maybe he rose slowly (by slowly I mean “until he became a pro”), maybe I just don’t know about the media on him. Barça, on the other hand, “protected” Messi very well. We would hear about him, and all, but he wasn’t in the spotlight the whole time as a youngster.
But, you know, just take all the “new Messis” that flopped at Barça and you’ll see that: 1. it’s much harder to establish yourself as a professional, and 2. the impact of all this attention isn’t always good. There are many, many more failed wonderkids than there are footballing superstars.
Now, you have to consider also that many high-level players only came to get the attention of the media and the public already in the professional scenario.
As a Real Madrid fan, this guy better be the next R9 without injuries, or else we’re completely fucked. So many among our fanbase believe he’s gonna immediately occupy the starting striker position once he arrives and I have a bad feeling that the board thinks the same way. That’s way too much pressure for a 17 year old, I think we should wait at least 3-4 years before (and if) he is ready for pretty much the most important role any footballer in the world could have, being the starting number 9 of Real Madrid.
I wish we could have bought an actual world class and proven striker like Kane instead of chasing every 17 year old available, but it is what it is I guess.