Lucas Vázquez, the gray farewell of the juggling youth player who ended up taking 20 steps back

Lucas Vázquez is no longer a Real Madrid player. Having just turned 34, his departure from the Whites will be made official this Thursday (1:00 PM), in a farewell ceremony that the club will hold for its youth player after ten up-and-down seasons with the first team. The Galician became one of the most beloved players by fans for his boldness and daring, but he ended up leaving through the back door .

Signed by Real Madrid at the age of 16, he quickly moved to Castilla , where he secured promotion to the Second Division . There, he formed part of a team that included players such as Nacho Fernández, Casemiro, Fabinho, Álvaro Morata, Jesé, Raúl de Tomás , and Diego Llorente , among many others. He quickly became an important player in Alberto Toril 's scheme, thanks to his dribbling skills, his excellent ability to create goalscoring opportunities, and his ability to move forward.

So much so that, just two seasons later, he went out on loan to Espanyol . It was time to show if he had the football to play in the First Division : seven assists and four goals in his first season at the highest level were enough for Madrid to buy him back. And, from then on, he enjoyed a decade full of success , becoming an important player in the scheme... but, due to the needs of the script, He ended up out of position and very marked .

Lucas Vázquez was known for being a skilled winger . He wasn't the fastest, nor the most technically gifted player, but he was a brilliant team player . Aware that he wasn't an undisputed starter, he never gave up and was always ready to contribute to the team . And his numbers weren't bad at all: in his first three seasons at Madrid, he scored 16 goals and provided 40 assists , figures more than decent for a substitute. But in his first year, something happened that will never be forgotten.

It happened on May 28, 2016 , at the Giuseppe Meazza stadium in Milan. Madrid was playing the Champions League final against Atlético Madrid , and the match went to penalties, in a clash where the Whites suffered greatly in extra time due to the exhaustion of many of their players. The newcomer, without hesitation, decided to take the first penalty . Calmly, quietly, and juggling the ball in his hands, he paved the way for Madrid to win: "I knew I wouldn't miss," he said afterwards.

From that day on, Lucas earned a place in the hearts of Real Madrid fans . He was a daring, brazen, and always-on player from the bench, a kind of middle-class player who never failed. A player who raised the team's level whenever he came on. But then something changed: in the final months of the 2019-20 season and the first months of the 2020-21 season, due to injuries on the team, he was forced to convert his position to defense . And things weren't bad, until everything fell apart.

An ending that didn't deserve it

His speed, fighting spirit, and tactical intelligence allowed him to more than make up for Dani Carvajal when necessary . But the key was the team: since Real Madrid defended with the ball and were predominantly an attacking team, Lucas's shortcomings at the back weren't apparent. He was a player out of position, but the gaps he had because he wasn't a specialist weren't noticeable thanks to everything around him. Until last season.

The 2024-25 season arrived, and those 20 steps back he had taken to help the team ended up being his downfall . It's true that this decision led him to play more years at Madrid, but it made him live a nightmare in his last season as a full-back, where he had to replace Carvajal's serious injury : he had lost some speed and, of course, the team's defensive concept had completely evaporated. And that made him vulnerable : all the teams knew which flank they had to attack Madrid from.

Lucas Vázquez was always in the spotlight , often the one singled out for defeats and Madrid's weak spot. His main problem was that he wasn't a full-back, and as the years went by, his shortcomings became more noticeable . Trent Alexander-Arnold was chosen for the position , and with that, his departure was a foregone conclusion: he had no space in attack, and in defense, his continued presence was unsustainable . After the Club World Cup, it was time for Lucas and Madrid to part ways.

"Lucas Vázquez symbolizes the hard work, perseverance, humility, and winning spirit that are essential to succeed in this shirt. He is a player who has earned the affection and recognition of all Real Madrid fans. Real Madrid is and always will be his home," Florentino Pérez said in his farewell statement. With 25 titles under his belt , including five Champions League titles and four La Liga titles, the youth academy player, who was forced to take 20 steps back, bids farewell to Real Madrid.