Ancelotti calls Real Madrid teenage goalkeeper as his ‘Buffon’ – report

One month into the summer transfer window and Andriy Lunin’s future still remains unclear.

After a successful campaign last season covering for the injured Thibaut Courtois, the young Ukrainian star is hungry for more and refuses to be a backup option behind the Belgian.

Given Courtois’ seniority and supremacy, however, that is not possible in the Spanish capital leading to talks of a possible departure.

Backup plan

With Lunin’s future unclear, Real Madrid have been linked with Kepa Arrizabalaga as a potential Plan B. Another in-house solution viewed by the manager is young Fran Gonzalez.

The Spanish teenager arrived at Real Madrid from Cultural Leonesa in 2022 and spent his first two seasons with the Juvenil B and Juvenil A setups respectively.

He has now been called up for the first-team’s pre-season tour in the United States and The Athletic reports that Carlo Ancelotti is impressed by the youngster.

In fact, the Italian tactician cannot help but call him his new ‘Buffon’ as Gonzalez’s frame, at 6ft 6in, reminds him of Juventus legend Gianluigi Buffon.

At 19 years of age, there is still much to learn for the young Spanish shot-stopper before he can lay claim on a regular starting role.

However, many internal figures see him capable of being Real Madrid’s next No.1 especially given that Courtois is now 32.

It will thus be interesting to see if the manager rewards him with minutes in the ongoing tour and whether he is specifically trained and honed for the role.