Real Madrid forward Endrick praised teammate Antonio Rüdiger for guiding him through his goal drought, dedicating his brace in their 5-2 Copa del Rey win over Celta Vigo on Thursday to the defender.
Madrid survived a scare in the last 16 tie at the Santiago Bernabéu, as Celta fought back from 2-0 down to level in the 91st minute, before the home side scored three goals — two from the Brazil international — in extra time.
Endrick, 18, started the season brightly, opening his account in LaLiga and the Champions League, but hadn’t found the net since Sept. 17 and has played a total of just 83 league minutes this campaign.
“I keep working every day,” Endrick told Real Madrid TV. “My two goals are for Antonio Rüdiger. He knows what he does for me every day. He never praises me, and that’s a good thing! He tells me what to do, to score, to run, to keep fighting. Yesterday in training he gave me a tough game. I was thinking about it at home and he’s a great person. The goals are for him.”
Endrick’s first goal was fired in on the turn from the edge of the box — which the teenager celebrated by ripping off his shirt — while the second was a quick-thinking backheel inside the six-yard box.
“[The first] was a very important goal for me,” Endrick said, when asked about that exuberant celebration. “This is my job. I have to do well for the team, scoring goals, doing whatever. Scoring a goal for Madrid, for these fans, the players, the staff, is really good. In the last Copa game I missed the chances I had. Today, I had two chances and scored.”
The cup win saw Madrid bounce back from their 5-2 defeat to Barcelona in the Spanish Supercopa final in Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
Captain Lucas Vázquez said the performance, which came after coach Carlo Ancelotti rested key players such as Jude Bellingham and Fede Valverde, showed Madrid’s strength in depth.
“Endrick did well with the minutes he had,” Vazquez said. “It shows the quality in this squad. We made changes, and the team did well, whoever plays delivers.”