Scout who discovered Real Madrid-bound star says he always wanted Bernabeu move – ‘Has their DNA’ | OneFootball

Franco Mastantuono, the 17-year-old sensation set to join Real Madrid, has had this dream since he was a little boy.

Daniel Brizuela, the man who first spotted Mastantuono’s talent while scouting for River Plate, recently shared with AS how the youngster always wanted to play for the Spanish giants.

Back in June 2017, Brizuela travelled to the small town of Azul in Argentina. There, he saw a nine-year-old kid who stood out not just for his football skills but also for his confidence.

That kid was Mastantuono. Even at that young age, Franco already had his eyes on one goal, which is to play at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Brizuela recalled that Mastantuono would always talk about Real Madrid. He imagined himself wearing the white shirt and playing alongside the best.

“He always liked Madrid. He saw himself playing in white. Because of his qualities, and we have talked about it many times, he would fit perfectly at the best club in the world.

“He has always thought that it would be his home in the future and has admired many players who have passed through there,” he began saying.

The Real Madrid DNA was always there

Franco Mastantuono has always wanted to play for Real Madrid. (Photo by Marcelo Hernandez/Getty Images)

Brizuela did not just see talent in Mastantuono, he saw something special. According to him, the qualities that Real Madrid look for in a player were already present in Franco at the age of nine.

“He has the DNA of a Real Madrid player. He always has. At Real Madrid, they look for a player with special qualities, and he had them all: supreme intelligence, interpretation of the game, individual technique, ambition, and a high competitive level.

“In that field, he played as if he were at the Bernabeu.”

Brizuela also noted that, unlike most of the Argentine wonderkids who dream of playing for Barcelona, Mastantuono always had his heart set on Real Madrid.

“It is obvious that there were many Argentine children who joined Barcelona because of Messi, such as Claudio Echeverri, whom I also recruited for River.

“But Franco was always clear that he wanted to play for Real Madrid. That idea has always prevailed in his way of thinking,” he added.