Mourinho rules out Real Madrid youngster’s January loan exit: ‘Anyone interested will have to fight me hard’

Mourinho rules out Real Madrid youngster’s January loan exit: ‘Anyone interested will have to fight me hard’ Speaking to TNT Sports Brazil ahead of Real Madrid’s UEFA Champions League clash against AS Roma, Jose Mourinho has dismissed the possibility of loaning out Endrick in January. The 20-year-old star had rejected chances to leave the Santiago Bernabeu during the summer afer Mourinho convinced him to stay. But, since then, he has struggled for minutes in the early parts of the season so far at the Spanish capital club under the Portuguese tactician. As such, rumours of a possible departure on loan in January, similar to the deal that saw him join Olympique Lyon last winter, have been growing strong in recent weeks . Intriguingly, AS Roma are one of the clubs understood to be interested in signing Endrick, after having tried to bring him in on a temporary operation in the summer. Mourinho shuts the door However, Mourinho, who had convinced Endrick to stay at Real Madrid in the summer, has firmly closed the doors on a loan departure in the winter transfer window. Mourinho rules out Endrick’s loan exit in January. (Photo by David Balogh/Getty Images) “No, no, forget it. If any interested clubs are waiting for him, they better sit down, because they will get exhausted waiting standing up,” he said. Continuing, the Real Madrid boss made it clear that he likes Endrick a lot and fully counts on him despite his limited role so far. “Endrick is a player I absolutely adore, a player I believe has huge potential and who is very important to us.” Concluding, Mourinho added: “Anyone interested in him will have to fight me hard, because I believe he does not need to go out on loan and that he’ll have massive success here.” Only one appearance for Endrick so far Endrick has played only four minutes this season. (Photo by David Balogh/Getty Images) Endrick enjoyed a successful loan stint at Lyon during the second half of the last season. Following that, he earned a call-up to the Brazil squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and returned to Madrid hoping to gain a prominent role in the team. However, an injury during pre-season, coupled with the additions of Carlos Espi and Yan Diomande, have meant that the 20-year-old starlet has barely featured. Indeed, Endrick has made only one appearance for Real Madrid this term, which came in a four-minute cameo against Elche last month. But Mourinho insists that the Brazilian international will be an important player for him and the team as the season progresses, thereby ruling out the possibility of him leaving on loan.