Local veterans remember Moralesthe now commentator of Real Madrid Television: a tiny forward who appeared a couple of afternoons in a Real Madrid team with problems scoring goals and moving forward. It was when the coach pulled the youth team because there was nothing else to do before getting desperate. Endrick is not Morales. He has all the earmarks of being a footballer with much more experience, but he is just as young and was the one Real Madrid grabbed against Celta to avoid what was about to become a storm of good. The Brazilian scored the goal that broke the game in extra time and, later, Valverde scored the fourth. The team, Ancelotti, the stands and the club breathed a sigh of relief. So much so that after Endrick scored another backheel, very similar to a historical photo of Di Stéfano. Soccer is a crazy thing.
The Copa del Rey round of 16 clash was not just another match. It was either heal the wounds or jump off the cliff. Finally, it was more the former, although without exaggeration. Ancelotti’s team’s game was a true reflection of what is happening to them this season. He does well, he does badly, he recovers, he gets depressed, he goes up or he takes a hit and ends up happy because of a goal from a young man and a hit from his most reliable footballer. We are halfway through the season, the most important thing remains, and you don’t know what to expect. Fans go from nervous to expectation, and from there to anger, and from there to who knows what. Maybe you end up with a heel strike.
The season may go downhill, but no one should be surprised if Madrid ends up like a motorcycle. Let’s see who dares to make predictions about the white team at this moment.
If it’s going to go well, yesIt will be partly because of Mbappé, who has found himself. He and Vinicius were starters, and players like Güler and Endrick already came out in the second half, when Ancelotti’s team already had two goals in favor and it seemed, deluded, that it was decided. In the current state, Madrid cannot do without Mbappé. What’s more, when he did it, the advantage slipped away. The Frenchman is decisive and has to be the one who drives the team to leave this winter as soon as possible. He scored a goal and started the play for the second. When he was substituted in the second half, he received his first ovation for what he had done on the field.
The public begins to love him with the same speed with which it begins to have a clear opinion about Tchouameni. Ancelotti opted for Asencio as Rüdiger’s teammate (waiting for Alaba to take over) and put the Frenchman in the midfield. Normally, he is an inconsequential footballer in that area, but against Celta he was very important in cutting the ball. Perhaps he was motivated by the whistles he received before starting the duel.
Of course, it did not help to stop Celta, when the Galician team took advantage of the blunders of a rival that had been distracted much more than allowed and much more than allowed for a team in its condition.
It was a totally unexpected ending after what was seen during the first half, when it was played in a state of shock, with Madrid with doubts, whistles and that feeling that accompanies so much this season that something is missing. It’s not very clear why, but something is not working on the computer..
A run by Mbappé after a penalty called for by Celta ended the lethargy. Exit to the left and missile. That whiplash that goes over the goalkeeper gives the impression that it is because anyone gets in front.
The game broke down in the second half, with Madrid happy because they were able to run. And when he runs, he does not hesitate and he is not afraid. Vinicius scored in a play that Kylian started and that was accompanied by Brahim who should have more weight in the team. Then they started the changes that, at the beginning, were for mel.
The team, Ancelotti (and everyone, let’s not fool ourselves) believed that this was done. But this Madrid is not yet that Madrid. Between the fact that Camavinga brought out his Hyde side, that Moriba never gets tired and that Asencio lost his momentumCelta tied the game.
It was night and the storm clouds could not be seen. But they were there, waiting. Then Güler gave it to Endrick (the changes, in the end, were for the better) and he shot, because that’s what he always does.
And he doesn’t do it badly, no.
Last minute of Real Madrid – Celta de Vigo, live today: Copa del Rey 2025