Mourinho turns to Ancelotti to rescue a Real Madrid star
Mourinho sends a direct message to Ancelotti
José Mourinho has dragged the Endrick file back into the spotlight, speaking about the Brazilian forward after Real Madrid's 3-0 win over Valencia at the Mestalla.
According to Sport newspaper, the Portuguese sent a clear message to Brazil head coach Carlo Ancelotti about the striker.
Mourinho wants his player to get minutes during the upcoming international break. He would not object to that happening away from the Santiago Bernabéu.
"My opinion is clear, I want Endrick to play," Mourinho said. "If Ancelotti fields him during the upcoming international break, I will be happy."
Those remarks grab attention given the limited role Endrick is playing with Los Blancos. The coach appears willing to let Ancelotti hand his young player the chance to feature that he has so far been unable to earn in Madrid.
The numbers lay out the Brazilian's situation in full. Endrick has played 141 official minutes this season, split between La Liga (85 minutes) and the Champions League (56 minutes).
Seven matches, one goal, one assist. Just one of those appearances came as a start. It is a limited presence for a player who returned to Real Madrid after regaining his confidence and a prominent role during his spell in France.
Endrick finished the second half of last season strongly with Olympique Lyonnais. He made the most of his loan to rebuild his confidence, scoring eight goals and providing eight assists in 21 matches, figures that fuelled expectations around his return to the Bernabéu.
It had seemed the forward would come back with enough about him to stake a claim in Mourinho's plans. Instead, the competition has complicated his chances.
Carlos Espí's arrival and the signing of Yan Diomande have squeezed Endrick's prospects even further.
Mourinho has plenty of options in attack, and Endrick has been unable to nail down a permanent place in the rotation. It is a situation that jars with the level he produced in France.
His future at the Bernabéu was already in doubt during the closing stages of the summer transfer window.
Roma came very close to landing him on loan, only for Mourinho to step in, halt the move and keep him in the squad.
Publicly, the coach defended the player's potential and stressed that any interested clubs would have to fight him for the signature.
The lack of minutes has reopened the debate about his future. The media do not rule out a January loan if nothing changes over the coming weeks.
Roma are still watching Endrick closely, and other clubs have been linked too.
