"Pressure” isn’t a word you would have associated with the build-up to Real Madrid’s Monday evening match by merely admiring the fixture from its cool candy exterior. After all, it was the start to the New Year, leaving the trophy-less chapter of 2013 in the closing annals of history. It was the home leg of the La Liga meetings against Celta Vigo, all to be played out in the robust garrison of the Santiago Bernabéu. Even the temperature was mild for January in the capital and Carlo Ancelotti’s squad were coming off a fresh 1-0 friendly victory in Doha against Paris Saint German, a team with much more sizzle than the visiting side, Celta. In fact the only blemish on the night when kickoff rolled around was the verboten Ultra Sur members protesting beyond the moat of the castle. Whether you are madridista or not, three points was the customary standard expected for paying the entrance fee, one last gift for some madrileños on Spain’s Three Kings Day.
Nevertheless, upon more scrutinous examination, Madrid’s Italian manager must have been feeling the heat enough to unfasten his top button. As much football as there is still to be played, Spain’s domestic campaign is at it’s half life más o menos and with Barcelona and Atlético de Madrid winning their respective fixtures over the weekend, in order to keep pace at five points slow, Real needed another three points to add to their column. Even with the continuous absence of Messi, Barca still managed to thrash Elche while Diego Simeone keeps finding just the right ingredients to cook up full rewards, this time down south at Málaga. In lieu of tediously playing catch-up weighing heavily on the mind, it’s a curious selection dilemma that Don Carlo is butting heads with and he must do so carefully, because if handled brusquely, those who pay homage to Chamartín could turn on him. Here’s why.
The rays of light from home-grown hero Jesé Rodríguez are spilling out from between the cracks of the dugout and onto Spain’s green pitches this season. A Real Madrid youth product from the age of 14 and promoted to the senior squad on full duty this season, fans of the Spanish game from all over are labeling the young Spaniard as the next big thing to emerge from Castilla, Madrid’s reserve squad, after too dry a talent drought. In May of last season, Jesé broke the club record for most goals scored in a season by a Castilla player, blowing the dust of the tally set by famous Real Madrid striker Emelio Butragueño back in 1984 in the prequel to Real’s La Quinta del Buitre (a roundabout translation to “Vulture Squadron”) era. Everyone seems to be jumping on bandwagon hype surrounding the young cadet and how tempting of a lure it is with Real’s youth set up yet to produce an attacking ace in well over a decade.
Jesé came on as a substitute in late October against the old enemy at the Camp Nou and scored his first competitive goal for the first team. Despite losing the Clásico 2-1 to the home side, it was a warning shot to Spanish football that a bubble was rising to the surface from Real’s cantera. Something was brewing down there. Less than a month later the cauldron stirred again when the 20-year old’s second half performance brought about two assists in a 5-0 thrashing of UD Almería. But indeed his most significant contribution materialized when his club needed him most.
On the last match day of 2013 in Valencia’s Mestalla stadium, in what was a testy affair, Madrid’s number 20 beat Vincente Guaita at his near 
post for the 3-2 winner. Reluctant to be given a prominent role when the season commenced, by Christmas there was no ignoring him. Fans and media alike, both parties who have seemingly supported Ancelotti, a luxury not all Real Madrid managers enjoy, have slowly started to murmur that their out-breaking young star should be even more included in the plans. That being said, Ancelotti has remained cautious and probably rightfully so, stating before the Celta game:
“Jesé might play tomorrow. He is very important for Real Madrid.”
Carlo kind of had to give the young gun a bit of praise when the 1-0 winner in Doha on January 2nd was scored again by, you guessed it, Jesé Rodríguez - Real Madrid’s last goal of 2013 and first of 2014. But why all the hype now? Why Jesé? Why not Mata while he was at Madrid? Negredo? Soldado? Even the more recent Pablo Sarabia of Getafe? Searching even farther into the depths of Real Madrid to players like Javier Portillo.
The answer could lie in the pressure and expectations. Whereas Madrid’s fetish for trophies exceeds that of almost any club, there is little to no time to nurture youth into becoming first team players. The policy to buy big since the turn of the millennium has all but squashed the opportunity for cantera crops to work their way into first team places. The names mentioned above are only the tip of the iceberg really. Those are just some of the attacking ones you may have heard of. It’s no secret how much the pressure can effect a player in Madrid. So they buy finished products, imported and ready to perform.
In a recent FourFourTwo interview, Mesut Özil admits to enjoying the more low key social status in London with Arsenal opposed to the constant raids of paparazzi in everyday life in the Spanish capital. Even in the past week Xabi Alonso, who is all the latest buzz about whether or not he will renew a contract with the club, spoke about the pressures of wearing the famous white shirt.
“Playing for Madrid is a very intense experience… There is a lot of pressure and responsibility.”
So perhaps easing Jesé into the squad slowly is the best for his development at the senior level. There’s enough talent around him everyday at training where he is learning rapidly. So showcasing his abilities in cameos isn’t the worst of things Ancelotti could be doing despite the anxiety growing amongst the 80,000 surrounding him at the Bernabéu, all praying for a Castilla savior. The public’s amounting craving for a self-made attacking hero in combination with the copious pressures and expectations that comes with the Real occupation can simply be detrimental if ignored. If anything, the Italian tactician is protecting Jesé, grooming the feathers so that one day he can take full flight. Learning from Madrid’s past of eventual star players that have ended up in other colors, Jesé Rodríguez will have his chance to shine if handled in with care. Recent speculation has even suggested the boy could be in Brazil by the time the World Cup commences in six short months. Talented? Extremely. But he’s only ever scored two league goals. Two. So tipping him for Spain’s selección is exactly the kind of pressure, Ancelotti will be trying to shield off his young pupil.
Nonetheless it’s not a question of ability. The forward can be deployed up the center or in wide positions, as has been the case with Ancelotti since he took over. He’s got a peculiar way about him. His powerful legs drive him onward and by defenders that he already has the brash to ask questions of. Yet it’s not in your typical run-and-gun winger with pace style approach. The boy is a razor technically and manipulates the ball with a sluethy sort of hidden arrogance (or confidence – your pick). The technical deities have been more kind to him than fellow Castilla promotee, Álvaro Morata, the subject of some talk this January. Driving direct runs into the penalty area from wide positions suggests that Jesé been working closely if not copying Ronaldo. Some joke that they may even have the same barber. Whatever the case is, when he replaced Isco on 62 minutes in the Monday night fixture against Celta Vigo, some of that unexpected “pressure” was creating a waft of discomfort in a heavy performance – still 0-0.
Only minutes after his introduction, the ball found the young star at the crowded back post via a defected cross. Jesé feinted inside before dragging the ball toward the end line. He then slotted across a calculated pass for a grateful Karim Benzema to poke clumsily past the goalkeeper. The crowd erupted. As expected, the Frenchman tore off toward one corner in celebration but Jesé, in a jubilation of his own, pealed off euphorically toward the other dragging just as many teammates as the goal scorer in his wake – another mammoth contribution.
Cristiano Ronaldo added two more before the match could conclude, a classy goodbye tribute to his compatriot and footballing legend, Eusebio. That also marked Ronaldo’s 400th career goal, a mountainous achievement for an even more monstrous player. However, it may be a night remembered for more than just Portuguese excellence but maybe, just maybe, for another stepping stone on the path to Jesé Rodríguez’s come to power.
The real question in his development is can he be as prolific on the paramount levels of football as he has been with Castilla and in particular with the Spanish national youth teams? He was leading scorer in the European U-19 Championship in 2012, a tournament in which Spain won, marking the only goal in the final against Greece, mind you. A future hero at the national level is every boy’s dream but patience is required when you’ve come as far as Jesé has.
After the near pinnacle success in the Barcelona camp regarding homegrown talent, madridistas for are looking for one of their own to carry the flag into battle and leave scars on the flesh on their rivals. For so long it’s been mercenaries coming to fight for the capital’s grandest club. It’s not that the socios of Real Madrid are complaining about goals from Ronaldo and company, but it would do their madridismo a warm favor if one of their crafted goods rose to stardom. The aforementioned Butragueño was seamlessly succeeded by Raul but there was no one to sit in the old number 7’s thrown when he left for Schalke in 2010. Can Jesé link the golden chain of Real Madrid fábrica stardom back together? It certainly won’t go unnoticed if he does. It’s about time.
