Although some of their biggest legends like Emiliano Butragueno, Raul Gonzalez, and Iker Casillas came up through their academy, Real Madrid rarely get the credit for developing talents.
As already reported here, Real Madrid has more players developed by their academies playing in the top five European leagues compared to Barcelona. Additionally, Real Madrid has given more minutes to their academy graduates than Barcelona.
As things stand, Real Madrid currently also have several talents coming up through the pipeline and there are two midfielders in particular who are shining with the Castilla team under Raul Gonzalez.
Firstly, there is Nico Paz, who will be easily recognizable for most Real Madrid fans as the youngster has gotten several cameos with the first team and also scored a goal against Napoli in the Champions League group stage.
The Argentine operates on the wing but is also comfortable while playing as an attacking midfielder. While he has remained unused as a substitute in most games with the first team, he is a regular for Raul’s Castilla team currently playing in the third division of Spanish football.
In the Primera Federacion, the 19-year-old has scored 7 goals and given 1 assist in 14 appearances. He has also got four La Liga appearances up to now but has played only a total of 19 minutes in the top Spanish league.
Secondly, Manuel Angel is another top talent who is shining under Raul with Real Madrid Castilla. He is yet to make his first team debut and thus is not as easily a recognizable face as Nico Paz, and he also operates in a deeper position on the pitch.
Angel has a more all-round profile, with his dribbling and technical qualities complemented by his good physicality.
With Real Madrid Castilla, the midfielder has made 18 appearances in the Primera Federacion and another 5 appearances in the UEFA Youth League. The youngster has two goals and one assist in the former competition, and another goal in the latter.
While they still have a long way to go, these midfielders have shown that they possess the talent to get into the Real Madrid first team in the future.
Nico Paz has already been in the first-team dynamics to a considerable degree this season, and Manuel Angel might also get his chances under Ancelotti soon enough.
