According to Marca, Real Madrid have renewed the contract of academy gem Diego Lacosta, a UEFA Youth League champion who has progressed steadily over the past season and has already played for four teams at La Fábrica.
Real Madrid have secured one of La Fábrica's most outstanding talents. The club have renewed Diego Lacosta's contract, keeping the 18-year-old midfielder in the fold. His progress had become too evident to go unrewarded.
At Valdebebas, he is compared to Valverde. At Peñarol, Valverde was nicknamed "Pajarito" (little bird) because of his long legs, which made him seem to fly across the pitch. Lacosta draws the same comparison for similar reasons: his enormous stride, relentless drive and a way of moving that seems to glide over the ground, barely touching the grass.
The renewal comes in a week worth celebrating. The Aragonese player had just scored the opening goal against AEK Athens in the UEFA Youth League, helping the youth side to victory. Lacosta's trajectory has been consistently upward. Born in Zaragoza on February 16, 2008, he joined La Fábrica in 2020 from his hometown club Santo Domingo Juventud, without even passing through Zaragoza. The boy who once played for the Cadete B team has changed enormously. After a season of steady growth, he is now a prominent figure in the club's reserve ranks, having reached Castilla.
These achievements at La Fábrica gradually brought him to Mourinho's attention. During the Portuguese coach's pre-season preparations, Lacosta took the step every academy player dreams of. He took part in three summer friendlies with the first team, playing against Fiorentina and Ferencváros in two of them. It is just one step on a climb he will continue.
This season, which ends perfectly with his contract renewal, is sure to be remembered in his career. Lacosta lifted the UEFA Youth League trophy in Lausanne, then won the European title with Álvaro López's youth team, followed by the league and the Copa de Campeones. The final highlight came at the Santiago Bernabéu, where he lifted the U-20 Intercontinental Cup in the best-attended final in the history of that age group. This season he also showed versatility and stamina, playing for four different teams in the same campaign, from Juvenil B to Castilla, and making his Premier League International Cup debut with the latter.
His rise would also not have been possible without the constant support of his family. Lacosta has always been close to them, and they come to watch him play almost every weekend, having backed him continuously since he left Zaragoza. Alongside football, he is also pursuing his studies and is currently majoring in Administration and Finance.
On the pitch, his attributes are immediately clear. He is a strong central midfielder who can operate anywhere in midfield, covering large distances, making runs from the second line, passing intelligently and showing a competitive spirit reminiscent of Valverde. The comparison is no exaggeration. It is these qualities that led Real Madrid to secure the future of this new "Pajarito" making his way through La Fábrica.
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