“He is the heir” – Real Madrid star backed to succeed Lionel Messi | OneFootball

On Saturday, Franco Mastantuono arrived in Spain ahead of starting the next chapter of his career at Real Madrid. There are many expectations for the attacker, who will official join when he turns 18 later this month.

Mastantuono is expected to be an important player for Xabi Alonso, despite his age. There is a general feeling within Real Madrid that they have a special player on their hands, and that is also felt in the teenager’s homeland of Argentina.

Daniel Brizuela, who is head of scouting at River Plate, discovered Mastantuono a few years ago, and he has very high hopes for the new Real Madrid player, as he has told Radio MARCA.

“Within a swarm of children, he made an oriented control and gave a pass that ended in a goal. That’s when I said: this is a child prodigy. The difference was not only in what he did, but in how and when he did it. He has the prototype of the European footballer. I always said he was a perfect player for Real Madrid.”

“I’m sure he will be at the next World Cup. He is the heir to (Lionel Messi)’s number 10 of the Argentine national team.”

Image via Marcelo Hernandez/Getty Images

There is much expected of Mastantuono at Real Madrid

Given that Alonso plans to count on Mastantuono as a regular starter at the age of 18, there is no doubt that Real Madrid see him as being one of their talismanic figures for many years to come. That comes with pressure, although he will be eased into life in the Spanish capital, given that he will officially start training with less than a week until the new La Liga season starts for Los Blancos.

It will be interesting to see how Mastantuono gets on at Real Madrid, but the expectations are certainly high.