It doesn’t suffice to simply bring in the likes of Ødegaard, Reinier, Kubo and Valverde and expect them to adapt without cultivating a roadmap for them.

Real Madrid have succeeded in youth development because of these carefully cultivated development plans for their youngsters. https://twitter.com/btlvid/status/1253396753572933635

For example, take a look at Federico Valverde.

-Real Madrid signed him at 16, before he had even made his Peñarol debut

-He spends one season with Peñarol’s first team, then one season with Madrid’s youth team, then one season on loan at Deportivo

Then Valverde returns to Madrid, spends a season as a benchwarmer learning from Modrić, Kroos and co. Then this season, he explodes onto the scene as a starter.

All the while Madrid are taking measures to ensure his physical development goes smoothly: https://twitter.com/zachlowy/status/1243061637587894272?s=21 https://twitter.com/zachlowy/status/1243061637587894272

Every team is going to have their fair share of Cassanos and Bendtners who, for one reason or another, don’t pan out the way their potential would’ve suggested.

But by drawing out these roadmaps for these young players, teams can cut down on those failures.

When looking at Madrid’s failures, you also have to put them in context.

Theo Hernandez struggled to make the cut in Madrid, didn’t do well on loan at Real Sociedad, left to Milan for a slight loss....now one of the best left backs in Italy this season.