A goal of the season contender scored against Villarreal alerted top clubs of his potential, with Barcelona among those interested, but it was Real Madrid<\/a> who ultimately secured the young talent before Deadline Day.<\/p>\n Registered to Real Madrid Castilla for this season, Mart\u00ednez has trained with the senior squad during his first week at the club and has even been included in the traveling party to face Real Betis on Friday.<\/p>\n Mourinho: Mart\u00ednez \u2018a Lad With Potential\u2019 Mourinho talked up the potential of Mart\u00ednez. | Burak Akbulut\/Anadolu\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Speaking in his prematch press conference, Mourinho confirmed that Mart\u00ednez could be part of the team to take on Betis at La Cartuja despite only just arriving at the club.<\/p>\n \u201cThe plan is for him to be on the bench tomorrow,\u201d Mourinho told reporters. \u201cThat should give you a pretty good idea of \u200b\u200bthe plan. <\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s only trained with the first team for two days. I can\u2019t tell you much more. But obviously, before the club signed him, knowing he wouldn\u2019t be a first-team player directly … we also analyzed and gave our opinion on whether he could ever make it here. He\u2019s a lad with potential. <\/p>\n \u201cTomorrow he\u2019ll be\u00a0on the bench. We\u2019ll see. We\u2019ll see if he plays or not, tomorrow. But it\u2019s a step forward, just being with us.\u201d<\/p>\n Asked more generally about La F\u00e1brica, Mourinho talked up the possibility of more opportunities for the club\u2019s rising stars, adding \u201cThey can all be excited that their time with the first team will come.\u201d<\/p>\n Who Is Sergio Mart\u00ednez?<\/p>\n La emoci\u00f3n de \ud835\udc26\ud835\udc1a\ud835\udc2b\ud835\udc1c\ud835\udc1a\ud835\udc2b \ud835\udc1e\ud835\udc27 \ud835\udc2d\ud835\udc2e \ud835\udc1d\ud835\udc1e\ud835\udc1b\ud835\udc2e\ud835\udc2d en LALIGAEASPORTS. \ud83e\udd79 <\/p>\n LALIGAHighlights | @realracingclub<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/4eOcEsyrtF<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 LALIGA (@LaLiga) August 16, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n The inclusion in the squad for the trip to Seville is a big show of faith in Mart\u00ednez, who remains a complete unknown to many fans.<\/p>\n The teenager, who is part of Spain\u2019s U-19 setup, joined Racing Santander at the age of 10 and developed into one of the club\u2019s top prospects, making his breakthrough during their promotion-winning campaign last season.<\/p>\n Mart\u00ednez is seen as a versatile midfielder, capable of playing in both deeper and more advanced roles. He has already demonstrated his goalscoring potential with a rocket from outside the box on his La Liga debut against Villarreal last month.<\/p>\n As part of Real Madrid\u2019s B team, he will hope to emulate the example of fellow midfielder Thiago Pitarch, 19, who broke into Los Blancos\u2019 senior team last season and has earned his place alongside the more established stars.<\/p>\n![\"Jos\u00e9](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/01m0j4jy755vdncj8sjf.jpg\" "\\"Jos\u00e9")
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