Zinedine Zidane is considered one of the greatest figures in the history of Real Madrid and possibly the only one whose coaching career has lived up to the legend he earned on the pitch. With his unique ideas, his greatest achievement was winning three consecutive Champions League titles with Los Blancos.
After this journey, Zidane returned to Madrid for a second spell as coach, during which he fell in love with a promising young center back, but now he is leaving the club through the back door. Marvelous Antolín, better known as Marvel, is a left-footed center back who can also play at left back.
Born in Casablanca (Morocco), the Real Madrid youth player has Nigerian ancestry, although he is also a Spanish national. In football terms, he is a center back who is not particularly tall, at 5’11”, but has a distinctive physique due to his speed and strength, to which must be added a neat ball control that stood out in the lower divisions.
From a very young age, Marvel caught the eye at La Fábrica, skipping several steps and beginning to be talked about for a future in the first team. Many coaches praised his qualities, but it was Zinedine Zidane who began to place his trust in the center back, who, however, was unable to break into the first team, unlike one of his teammates from the same generation who burst onto the scene later: Raúl Asencio.
Now, at the age of 22 and after a loan spell at Córdoba, Marvel has returned to Valdebebas, where he is not even considered for the first team or Real Madrid Castilla, where it is widely believed that his time has come to an end. As things stand, the Spanish international will leave Madrid’s youth ranks and his future seems to be very close.
Another club in the Community of Madrid, Leganés, recently relegated to the Liga Hypermotion, has taken an interest in the Nigerian-born player and, without a transfer fee, will sign Marvel on a permanent deal. Óscar Egido, a journalist for Cadena Ser, has reported that the Pepineros have agreed to sign him until June 30, 2028, three seasons in which Marvel will have the opportunity to take another step toward the elite he touched with Zidane on the bench at Real Madrid.
Marvel’s rise
Power and exuberance were the qualities that led Marvel to train regularly with Real Madrid‘s first team during Zinedine Zidane‘s spell, although he was only called up for the Copa del Rey, without playing any minutes.
At Córdoba, on his last loan spell, the Madrid player managed to establish himself in a tough league like the Second Division, where he played 27 games in more than 2,000 minutes for the Andalusian side.
Now, at Leganés, one of the candidates for promotion to the Liga EA Sports, Marvel hopes to take another step forward and, at 22, become one of the best defenders in the category. It is in his hands to continue his progress and, who knows, maybe even play in the 2026-27 season in the First Division and face his Real Madrid.
Real Madrid, ‘The Factory’ of center backs
Currently, in addition to the aforementioned Raúl Asencio, there is a promising crop of center backs in the Real Madrid youth academy, with one or more likely to make it into the first team in the medium term.
Joan Martínez is the name that stands out the most, thanks to his 18 years of age and his physical and technical abilities as a top player. In addition, names such as Jacobo Ramón, who already knows what it is like to play and score with the first team, Mario Rivas, and Víctor Valdepeñas are making a name for themselves alongside Diego Aguado, a left back who can also play as a center back and completes the list of outstanding future center backs for the Whites.