Carlo Ancelotti called Rafa Marín (Guadajoz, Sevilla, 2002) on Thursday to train with the first team. It is not the first time that he has done it this course and in the past Zidane has already recruited him, but it is quite a declaration of intentions: the Italian coach considers him the most promising central defender in the quarry. He has been very surprised in the months he has been on the white bench in this second stage as a coach. Against Algeciras, the Sevillian defender agreed with him by scoring the second goal for Raúl’s with a powerful header at the exit of a corner kick thrown by Peter Federico.
Marín is a center-back with a very powerful physique (1.91 meters), to which he adds good technique and ball output. His height is also used to perfection, because he is very powerful overhead, both in defensive actions and in set pieces attack plays. In addition, he has a very important quality at Real Madrid: he is very fast thanks to his stride.
This season has become a fundamental piece for Raúl in Castilla (he has played seven games) and in those games he has offered a fantastic performance. Even Luis de la Fuente, for the Under-21, follows closely because it is a demarcation in which La Rojita always has many problems. Its growth may be the solution to the shortage of troops that Madrid has in the center of the rear, since Alaba and Militao are indisputable but on the bench are Nacho, who must also cover the casualties on the wings, and Vallejo, who has not yet debuted this course.
To this day, Rafa Marín is one of the most promising defenders of Real Madrid and the National Team, although his life could have been very different if not for his mother. As a child, his passion was motorcycles. At the age of three he had a cross country bike and at five they bought him a quad. But his mother did not like his son’s fondness for speed and decided to join Alcolea at the age of six, the team where his father played at the time. There it was discovered that he had talent and his passion for motorcycles was definitely put on hold.
He was in Alcolea from 2009 to 2013, when he signed for the Historic Center. A single season served for Sevilla to recruit him in 2014. After two years in the Sevilla youth squad, the call came from Real Madrid and Rafa Marín understood that it was the best for his future. His family supported him in this decision and, over the years, points out that it was the correct one, because in Valdebebas more and more his name appears as the next great central of the future.