Where are they now? The 16 Real Madrid kids given debuts by Mourinho

Despite often being criticised for not putting his faith in young prospects, Jose Mourinho gave plenty of academy graduates a chance at Real Madrid.

Madrid’s academy has produced a lot of talented stars over the years, although the crop of players used by Mourinho had some mixed success.

We’ve revisited the 16 academy graduates handed debuts by the manager to see how they subsequently fared.

Antonio Adan

Adan became a pawn in Mourinho’s war with Iker Casillas, making 18 first-team appearances for Madrid in all competitions.

The goalkeeper had his contract terminated shortly after Mourinho’s departure in 2013 and signed a deal with Cagliari.

He returned to the Spanish capital five years later, serving as Jan Oblak’s deputy at Atletico Madrid, before moving to Sporting Lisbon and helping deliver their first league title in 19 years.

Nacho

After impressing for the reserve team, Nacho was promoted to the senior squad towards the end of Mourinho’s first season in charge.

The versatile defender has now made 275 appearances for Madrid, winning three La Liga titles, the Copa del Rey and five Champions League titles. Not bad going.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Gareth Bale
🇫🇷 Karim Benzema
🇧🇷 Casemiro
🇪🇸 Dani Carvajal
🇪🇸 Isco
🇩🇪 Toni Kroos
🇧🇷 Marcelo
🇭🇷 Luka Modrić
🇪🇸 Nacho

Along with Cristiano Ronaldo, there are now 🔟 players who have won the #UCL five times! 🖐🏆 pic.twitter.com/0mvBgkH3Ft

— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) May 29, 2022

Pablo Sarabia

Sarabia came on as a substitute for the last 18 minutes of a 4-0 Champions League victory over Auxerre in December 2010 but never featured for the club domestically.

The Spaniard made 232 La Liga appearances for Getafe and Sevilla before joining PSG in 2019. Last season he was out on loan at Sporting, where he played alongside Adan, and he could well move away from Paris on a permanent deal this summer.

Alvaro Morata

Morata made 18 first-team appearances over the course of Mourinho’s three-year stint in charge and remained in touch with his former boss.

“I have a good relationship with Jose,” Morata told the Daily Mail in 2017. “He was my first coach in professional football and he gave me the chance to be a professional.

“He made me the first contact. Sometimes we send messages, not speaking about football, asking if everything’s OK and sending some jokes.”

The striker was sold to Juventus by Carlo Ancelotti in 2014, but…