La Fabrica’s ‘new Courtois’ who Argentina have robbed from Spain

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Adrián Rodríguez has inherited his father’s stature. The pair of them are both nearly two metres tall. Whilst his father Ernesto opted for volleyball, son Adrian choose football. Due to his large frame, he was always destined to be a goalkeeper.

Ernesto Rodriguez, an Argentine from Cordoba, was a brilliant volleyball player. His son Adrian was born in Palma de Mallorca and played for their youth team until 2015 when, at just 14, he signed for Real Madrid.

He’s been at La Fabrica for three years and continues to improve. Real Madrid have high hopes for the stopper but he’s yet to earn the same faith from the powers that be at international level. Adrian has dual nationality but the smarter of the two has been Argentina. The fact he’s still only 17, he’ll turn 18 in December, means Lionel Scaloni has selected him to join up with Argentina’s U20 side this week. Just as what happened with Messi, Spain have been caught ‘sleeping’ and have lost a potentially interesting player.

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At Madrid, however, they don’t have any doubts. Although comparisons can sometimes be tedious, Adrian Rodriguez could be the next Thibaut Courtois. His 1m 96cm frame should see him dominate the aerial aspect of the game. But that doesn’t limit his agility either and he’s no slouch with the ball at his feet. Although he’s a little younger, some are comparing him with Barça B’s Lazar Carevic.

And, as is commonplace in these cases, Adrian Rodriguez is already being followed by some big European sides. There’s significant interest in him from the Premier League. If he continues to develop at the same rate, he could go on to achieve great things.

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