Xabi Alonso closely monitoring 18-year-old Real Madrid academy prodigy | OneFootball

Just a month into the new season, Real Madrid have been dealt a major injury blow as key defender Antonio Rudiger is out with a thigh problem and is expected to be out for close to three months.

This creates a problem for manager Xabi Alonso, considering that Eder Militao has only recently come back after a second ACL injury, David Alaba is battling his own fitness issues, and Raul Asencio’s stock has declined.

Doors open for Diego Aguado?

This could potentially open the doors for someone from the Castilla squad to break into the first-team setup and Diego Aguado could be that player, reports SPORT.

Aguado is a special talent. (Photo by Ricardo Nascimento/Getty Images for DFB)

The 18-year-old centre-half was a key player for Castilla last season and did not leave like some of his former teammates such as Chema Andres and Jacobo Ramon, among others.

Borussia Dortmund were strongly interested in the teenager, but Real Madrid blocked his exit. While Aguado remains a part of the Castilla squad, under his mentor Alvaro Arbeloa, Xabi Alonso is keeping a close eye on his development.

While it was Carlo Ancelotti who gave Aguado his first-team breakthrough, Alonso could further nurture him, considering that the teenager fits the profile of the defenders that the manager wants in his tactical scheme – which is why he was in the FIFA Club World Cup squad.

With another injury to Rudiger, Dean Huijsen’s suspension, Asensio’s decline, and Alaba being used as a midfielder, Aguado once again finds the doors of the first team opening for him.