Pele, Zico, Ronaldo, and Neymar all became icons of their own eras, with some of them displaying their abilities on the European arena.
Endrick, who will be 17 in July, is the next in line to follow those legends, and he is already carrying the weight of a nation desperate for success.
The Samba Boys haven’t won the World Cup in 21 years.
A golden generation, on the other hand, is on the way. It’s being created at Real Madrid, with the idea that they will lead their country to glory.
Endrick was signed to a £60 million contract by Los Blancos in 2022.
He will be joining his countryman Vinicius Jr, who has established himself as one of Europe’s most feared wingers, and the gifted Rodrygo, who is still finding his feet in Spain.
Endrick is currently playing with Palmeiras, where he has been training since he was 11 years old, before joining his new colleagues in 2024.
The talk about his natural skills began when he was a child.
“I don’t see a ceiling for him.”
Endrick’s adolescence was documented on social media, as is customary in the present era.
Simply searching his name on YouTube will yield hundreds of footage of the youngster duping the competition.
His penchant for the extraordinary is on display in a range of video, from scoring goals from the halfway line to defeating four or five men or doing overhead kicks.
He supposedly scored 165 goals in 169 games for Palmeiras’ youth squads in five years.
In 2021, he drew a lot of notice as he competed in the Campeonato Paulista finals in three distinct age groups: U15, U17, and U20.
Around that time, the club’s academy director, Joao Paulo Sampaio, predicted the teenager’s success on the international scene.
“If injuries respect him, I don’t see a ceiling for him,” Sampaio told AS. “As far as is humanly possible.
“He has quality, a strong personality and a champion mentality. In that regard, he resembles Cristiano (Ronaldo). He trains hard, is kind and has humility. We love him very much because he makes himself loved. He tries to please everyone around him.
“He has everything to be a world star in the future.”
On his own game, Endrick has said: “I’ll always fight. I’ll be persistent and try until the last minute I’m in the game. I never give up, I pressure defenders, I run more than anyone else on the pitch.”
Debut season
Endrick, dubbed the “hottest commodity in Brazilian football,” was bound to smash some records.
He made his debut in 2022, at the age of 16 years, two months, and sixteen days, becoming the club’s youngest debutant in history.
Just over three weeks later, the prospect made his debut with a brace in a 3-1 victory over Athletico Paranaense.
His two goals were insufficient to beat Toninho de Matos’ Brazilian championship record for the youngest goalscorer, which he set in 1978 at the age of 15.
Despite all of the expectation and chatter, Endrick delivered and landed.
The rush for his signature would commence.
The top clubs in Europe are linked.
Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid, and PSG are just a few of the clubs that have expressed interest in bringing Endrick to their club.
The Blues acted quickly, inviting him to their Cobham training facility.
The Premier League powerhouses put on a display to persuade him that his future belonged in England.
They enlisted the assistance of Brazilian legend Thiago Silva to sell the proposal to Endrick.
Many at Stamford Bridge believed that had done the trick, albeit the contract on offer was considered to be a stumbling point, with a performance-related component of the deal.
Endrick’s head was turned months later when he saw the Ciudad Real Madrid training ground.
First and foremost, he was astounded by the superb facilities on offer.
Second, the path to the first team appeared to be more viable.Vinicius Jr. and Rodrygo were both acquired from Brazilian football at a high cost and went on to become recognized first team stars.
Nothing could stop Endrick from doing the same.
Real, who had been looking for him for years and had worked with the same scout who had identified Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo, and Federico Valverde to close the deal, had finally located him.
But not everything has gone as planned.
The 14-time Champions League champions paid a £60 million premium for the then-16-year-old.
That seemed to have made him a target to be shot down.
Endrick will be unable to join his new club until he reaches the age of 18.
Meanwhile, he spent another season in Brazil, where he experienced his first character-building confidence issue.
Endrick was reduced to tears on the bench after being taken off due to a goal drought.
Abel Ferreira, his stern disciplinarian manager, confessed he should “have given Endrick a hug” when he got hooked.
Ferreira threw his support behind the youngster.
“You have to be calm. Nobody likes criticism. There is tremendous pressure on him to score five or six goals and he tries to deal with it himself. The goal will appear at the right time. You just have to be calm and keep smiling,” he said.
Back in April, Endrick also hit out at the pressure he is under and the talk of him as the ‘new Pele.’
“Sometimes I ask myself: Why are there so many stories about me?” Endrick revealed to Brazil’s GQ.
“I didn’t ask for this. There are situations that cross a line. ‘Ah, he’s the new Pele.’ Man, nobody is going to be Pele, he’s the king of football.”
Endrick has experienced ups and downs. He has been kicked from pillar to post as a result of his notoriety as a target for the hatchet guys.
A score versus Agua Santa in the Paulista Championship Final in April was accompanied by a trademark swashbuckling run that took away the opposing defense.
Endrick’s growing career has a new beginning in 2024. Expect him to make a big impression when he lands in Madrid.