Real Madrid continued their preparations ahead of Friday’s La Liga clash with Real Betis at Estadio La Cartuja.
After three wins in three games, Los Blancos have made a solid start to Jose Mourinho’s second spell at the Santiago Bernabeu and will be eager to build on it.
Sergio Martinez trains with first team
And, the main highlight from today’s training session was the presence of youngster Sergio Martinez.
The 19-year-old midfielder joined Real Madrid from Racing Santander on 31 August. And today, he trained with the first team for the first time under Mourinho.
Real Madrid paid around €3 million to sign Martinez, who will initially become a part of the club’s reserve team, Castilla.
Sergio Martinez training with the first team. (Photo courtesy: Real Madrid official website)
Even though he has already made his La Liga debut with Racing Santander this season, the young midfield starlet will have to settle for a spot in the reserve team competing in the RFEFPrimera Federacion.
The Merengues’ plan, however, is for him to regularly train with the first team, allowing Mourinho to monitor his development and assess his progress at close quarters.
After all, the Portuguese tactician is understood to have played a role in convincing the teenager to make the switch to Madrid from Racing Santander.
His involvement with the senior squad so soon after completing his move provides an early indication of the importance Real Madrid place on his development.
Seven players remain sidelined
While Sergio Martinez’s training debut came as a debut, Real Madrid still continue to be without several first-team stars.
Indeed, Aurelien Tchouameni, Raul Asencio, Ferland Mendy, Eder Militao, Rodrygo Goes, Endrick and Thiago Pitarch continued to work through their respective recovery programmes.
A number of the aforementioned players have started doing work with the ball on the field, taking a step forward in their recovery.
However, as things stand, there are not expected to be any changes to the squad for Friday’s match against Real Betis, meaning none of the players currently working away from the main group are expected to return in time for the trip.
