The 16-year-old Brazilian, Alipio, who was snapped up by Real Madrid to play for their youth team (and eventually… their starting XI) has already been given a vote of confidence by the same man who manages Cristiano Ronaldo. Jorge Mendes has become the youngster’s godfather, and his career will be managed by the Portuguese every step of the way.
Alipio’s journey has been a pretty tumultuous one. His mother passed away in 2002 and after a test with Sporting Braga in Portugal, he went to Brazil to train with Internacional. He was only spotted when Rio Ave, his Portuguese club, played a friendly against Chelsea, a game in which Alipio scored two goals.
Real Madrid are protecting their young player and trying to “prevent” too much exposure. For now, Alipio only answers questions put up on the club website, most of which consists of happy-go-lucky statements like “I am happy, doing what I like at a big club. This is only the first step.” We must say that Alipio already reminds us of Pato!
