A graduate of Los Blancos’ youth system has taken aim at the treatment the giants give their younger players
Cruz Azul midfielder Edgar Mendez has complained over Real Madrid’s treatment of the club’s young stars.
The 28-year-old winger was a member of the capital side’s youth ranks but failed to make the grade, instead working his way to the top of the game via a series of smaller clubs, before emerging with Granada and Alaves.
In July 2017, he made a €6 million move to Mexico, where he says he is enjoying the best moments of his career – a far cry from the Santiago Bernabeu in his eyes.
“In Real Madrid, they treated us like a factory for players,” he told Ultima Palabra. “I see the youth ranks here and I look at the treatment they are given, and it’s nothing like there. Here, they give you all the love.”
Los Blancos only have seven players from their youth academy currently on their books, although four of those, including Mariano Diaz, Lucas Vazquez and Dani Carvajal have left the club before returning to feature for the first team.
Meanwhile, he is delighted that he chose to take the gamble and move across the Atlantic.
“I am very happy in Mexico, a country that is giving me many things and where I am experiencing the best moments of my career here,” he said. “I feel Mexican because I fight like a Mexican, and I will continue doing it.”
Mendez won honours for Spain as an Under-18 international but never progressed higher up the ranks.
His former club face Levante in La Liga on Saturday, under pressure after a poor start to the season has left them trailing Sevilla and Barcelona in the Primera Division.
Alaves, another of Mendez’s previous teams, actually lead the league, having claimed maximum points on Friday night when they defeated Celta 1-0. They have played a game more than their rivals, however.