Real Madrid set to promote 20-year-old prospect to the first-team squad

Eder Militao’s injury against Athletic Club in Real Madrid’s first game of the season did not paint a pretty picture. The Brazilian was visibly in pain, and onlookers suspected a serious blow.

Subsequent tests revealed that the defender had ruptured his ACL, and alongside Thibaut Courtois, would miss a large part of the ongoing campaign.

With just three central defenders to count on all season, Carlo Ancelotti understandably began looking for backups. The board quickly ruled out any new signings, and the focus shifted to the subsidiary team.

Earlier this week, the Castilla team’s Marvelous Antolin Garzon – fondly called Marvel – was seen training with the first team. He was seemingly the manager’s preferred option from the academy and brought a promising profile to the table.

A couple of days into testing, Ancelotti appears satisfied by Marvel’s level. According to reports from AS, the Morocco-born star is set to be promoted to the first team.

Marvel, 20, is a centre-back by trade and would be the right fit from a stylistic viewpoint. His profile is said to be similar to David Alaba in terms of defensive timing and his comfort on the ball.

However, the Real Madrid manager is understandably sceptical about throwing a youngster in the deep end with such short notice.

Ancelotti thus considers Dani Carvajal and Ferland Mendy as options to cover at centre-back if needed. Needless to say, he also has Nacho Fernandez who will serve as the first-choice backup for Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba.

Real Madrid play their next game against Almeria in an early kickoff on Saturday. It remains to be seen if the manager includes Marvel on the squad to Estadio del Mediterraneo or gives him more time to acclimate with the first team.