Jose Mourinho has named his first official Real Madrid squad since beginning his second spell at the club, leaving out Endrick and Aurelien Tchouameni while including three academy players for Saturday’s meeting with Espanyol.
Real Madrid face Espanyol at Cornella in the second round of La Liga, with Mario Rivas, Cestero and Alexis Ciria rewarded for impressing Mourinho during pre-season.
Endrick has been omitted after suffering a minor muscle injury. The coaching staff decided not to risk the Brazilian forward at the start of the campaign, despite the problem not being regarded as serious.
Tchouameni has returned to full team training but has not been included because Mourinho believes the France international is not yet ready to play a competitive match.
“He is fine, but he arrived with some discomfort and trained only a little with the first team,” Mourinho said.
The decision also reflects the demanding schedule facing Real Madrid, who are due to play three league matches in the space of eight days. Mourinho’s staff are therefore taking a cautious approach with players returning from injury or lacking full match fitness.
The most notable selections are the academy trio of Rivas, Cestero and Ciria. The youngsters made an impression on Mourinho during preparations, when injuries forced Real Madrid to rely regularly on players from La Fabrica, the club’s academy system.
Mourinho had previously said that opportunities would be available to young players, and the inclusion of the three prospects against Espanyol represents the first clear example of that policy in his new project.
Rivas, Cestero and Ciria are expected to begin the match on the bench at Cornella. If called upon, they would become some of the first academy players to receive an opportunity under Mourinho during his second spell in charge.
“The door is open,” Mourinho said at his news conference, referring to the possibility of academy players proving themselves with the senior team.
Real Madrid’s squad for the match is:
Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois, Andriy Lunin, Mestre.
Defenders: Dean Huijsen, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate, Marc Cucurella, Carreras, Antonio Rudiger, Denzel Dumfries, Mario Rivas.
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Eduardo Camavinga, Federico Valverde, Arda Guler, Bernardo Silva, Cestero, Alexis Ciria.
Forwards: Vinicius Junior, Kylian Mbappe, Espe, Brahim Diaz, Yan Diomande.
The list gives Mourinho an early opportunity to balance the demands of a congested league schedule with the development of Real Madrid’s younger players. While Endrick and Tchouameni will not feature against Espanyol, three academy prospects have been placed on the matchday squad after making a strong impression during the club’s preparations.
