Chapter 118: A Show Worth Watching
After leaving Real Madrid's academy, José made stops at Atlético Madrid's training ground and then at Rayo Vallecano's, but he still hadn't found anyone worth signing. Atlético was in a rough patch as a club, and their youth players were just as uninspiring. Their golden boy, Fernando Torres, was sidelined with an injury, and none of the others caught José's eye. As for Rayo Vallecano, while their first team had been performing decently, their youth system was built on picking up the leftovers from Real Madrid and Atlético. Naturally, José wasn't impressed.
After visiting three academies, José checked the time—it was barely past two in the afternoon. He grabbed a meal at a nearby restaurant to satisfy his hunger and then debated whether to continue to his last destination.
He had planned four stops, and with three down, there was just one left. José wasn't interested in players too young to be immediately useful. He was mainly scouting those on the verge of breaking into their club's second team—typically 16 or 17 years old. By that age, most promising players already had contracts. Signing an older player was only possible if their club was willing to let them go, and younger prospects would only be available on youth contracts. This explained why he had found so little so far.
His final stop was a bit farther out, in the Madrid suburb of Getafe. But to José, Madrid already felt crowded enough with Real and Atlético vying for talent, not to mention Rayo Vallecano snatching up their leftovers. A second-division club like Getafe, which had spent years bouncing around the middle of the league table, didn't seem like the kind of place to produce top-tier prospects.
Still, after finishing his meal, José decided to go anyway. He had already spent the day running around, so one more stop wouldn't hurt. At the very least, it was better than sitting behind a desk with nothing to do. If nothing else, it was a good excuse to get some exercise.
He took the tram out to Getafe's academy and immediately noticed the difference. Unlike the bustling scenes at Real Madrid and Atlético, where scouts, agents, and parents packed the sidelines, Getafe's training ground was eerily quiet. Even at Rayo Vallecano, José had spotted plenty of people who, like him, were there to evaluate talent. Here, the only spectators were a handful of parents watching their kids from behind a chain-link fence.
"Must be tough for the smaller clubs," José thought to himself. It was a reminder of just how hard life was outside the footballing elite. Still, there was a practice match going on, which gave him a chance to see the players in action.
José never put too much stock in training sessions alone. While he valued good coaching and preparation, he firmly believed that true ability could only be judged in competitive situations. Training could be deceiving—what mattered was how a player performed under real pressure.
He settled in to watch. But after just a few minutes, he was already losing interest. Compared to the high-level football he was used to, this match was sluggish and uninspiring. The players had decent technical ability, and their organization wasn't bad, but none of them stood out. To José, they were just barely adequate.