Endrick's Journey: From Real Madrid to Lyon and World Cup Dreams

Endrick leans back, smiles, and doesn’t even try to hide how hard the last year has been.

“The first year is always tough,” he admitted on Men in Blazers, reflecting on the jump to European football and the shock of walking into a Real Madrid dressing room loaded with legends.

You arrive and the names hit you first. [Luka] Modric. Vinicius. Rodrygo. Players who have already lived the dream he is still chasing.

“You arrive at a club with players like Modric, Vinicius, Rodrygo… It’s very difficult to play with all of them, but you also learn a lot,” he said. “I’ve been able to put everything I’ve learned into practice at Lyon, and when I return I’ll be able to demonstrate it there.”

Breaking into that Madrid XI was always going to be a monumental task for a teenager. The minutes were scarce, the spotlight relentless. What kept him from being swallowed by it all wasn’t a goal or a moment of individual brilliance. It was voices on the other end of the phone.

“Bellingham calls me every day,” Endrick revealed. “When I was feeling down, he’d pick me up and we’d talk. He helped me a lot. Trent too. They’re very approachable players.”

Jude Bellingham and Trent Alexander-Arnold: two of the Premier League’s most recognisable faces, doubling as his support line. The bond goes beyond tactics or training-ground advice.

“I try to learn from them, including English, but it’s impossible to understand them,” he joked, a teenager still wrestling with accents as much as elite defences.

The real turning point came when he agreed to step away from the Bernabeu glare and head to Lyon. On paper, it looked like a step down. For Endrick, it felt like liberation.

“It wasn’t difficult to go to Lyon. In the end, God told me I had to go, and I went,” he said. “I wasn’t afraid; it’s been one of the best decisions of my life. I needed to play. I’ve been able to score goals, provide assists, and play a lot of minutes.”

That is the core of his story right now: a prodigy who chose minutes over mystique. Instead of waiting for scraps in Madrid, he went to France and started building a body of work, not just a highlight reel.

And as the World Cup looms, his focus stretches far beyond club football.

“Playing in a World Cup is the greatest thing. Being able to represent my country is a dream come true,” he said, fully aware of the weight that yellow shirt still carries. “The World Cup is very important to people, and it's been a long time since we won it.”

He knows the lineage. He knows the pressure. He also knows whose footsteps he’s trying to follow.

“Neymar has Brazilian DNA. He's one of the best in our history,” Endrick said, speaking with the kind of reverence every Brazilian kid reserves for the No. 10.

At the same time, his eyes are still on Madrid. Lyon is a chapter, not the book. The bridge between those worlds is a coach he already trusts.

“I get along very well with Ancelotti. He's a great coach and understands you very well as a person. I know they have a lot of respect for me.”

Respect in Madrid. Rhythm in Lyon. A World Cup dream with Brazil.

For a teenager who once felt overwhelmed walking into a room with Modric and Vinicius, the path ahead suddenly looks clear: keep playing, keep learning, and make sure that when he walks back into the Bernabeu, he’s no longer the kid in awe of the names on the lockers—but one of the names everyone else studies.