Real Madrid Castilla have been flying this season. Raul Gonzalez's team is currently second in the Primera Federacion Group 1 table, only two points behind leaders Alarcon.

 

After 23 matches, Castilla has lost just twice, with the last of those coming at the start of October. They are unbeaten in their last 17 league matches and are closing in on the record of 19 consecutive games without defeat.

One of the top performers for Castilla this season has been Rafa Marin. The 20-year-old has been a rock in the centre of the defence for Raul’s side, and he is considered to be one of the best in the team for leadership.

However, his contract at Real Madrid expires next summer, and both parties have yet to agree on terms, which has alerted clubs to his availability. Diario AS reports that Chelsea and RB Leipzig are among the clubs keeping tabs on the Spaniard’s situation.

Marin’s intention is to sign on at Real Madrid, and the club could do with tying down one of their most promising young players for the foreseeable future.

#Liverpool beat both Man United and Brexit to sign new star Stefan Bajcetic

It was a heart-warming moment in what has often been a season of struggle for Liverpool.

With just a few minutes remaining and the Merseyside derby won, Jurgen Klopp subbed Stefan Bajcetic off so he could receive the thunderous appreciation from the Anfield crowd he so richly deserved.

A few moments later, up in the Sky Sports commentary booth, club legend Jamie Carragher was anointing the 18-year-old player of the match.

That led to him performing post-match interview duties next to Mohamed Salah, who hailed him as the team's best performer since Klopp chucked him in.

'It's crazy, I was playing Under-18s a year ago and now I am playing at Anfield and that just happened in one year,' said the starry-eyed teenager in his mixed accent of Spanish and Scouse.

Next thing, he was posing for an Instagram snap with Hollywood star Will Ferrell, on the latest leg of his north-west football watching odyssey. It was, all told, quite the night.

Bajcetic has been a revelation this season to many Liverpool fans but his integration was always planned by Klopp.

Back in July, before Liverpool's pre-season tour, Klopp was asked why there hadn't been any midfield signings. He replied he wouldn't hesitate to deploy a fresh-faced trio of Harvey Elliott, Fabio Carvalho and Bajcetic if it came down to it.

That raised a few eyebrows given Bajcetic hadn't even made his professional debut at that point. But Klopp was deadly serious - and know we understand why.

The way the teenager tormented Everton - running 11km, winning all his tackles and nicking the ball back to spark the move which led to Cody Gakpo's first Liverpool goal - vindicated Klopp's decision to leave James Milner and Naby Keita on the bench with Thiago out injured.

Even more remarkable was that he was playing in a new position. To this point, Bajcetic has been a defensive No 6 but on his fifth consecutive start, Klopp pushed him into a No 8 role.

And amid the blood and thunder of the Merseyside derby, he prospered.

This is not to say Bajcetic is the full solution to the midfield conundrum that Liverpool will have to resolve this summer in order to challenge for silverware again.

Significant investment will still be required with England star Jude Bellingham one leading target. However, the emergence of Bajcetic may mean Liverpool avoid having to shell out on a second midfielder.

Given the youngster cost them a mere £224,000 when Liverpool beat both rivals Manchester United and incoming Brexit regulations to sign him from Celta Vigo in December 2020.

Liverpool had been in negotiations with the Spanish club for months, conscious that new Premier League rules prohibiting visa for Under-18 overseas players were about to come in following the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union.

In the final weeks of December, Liverpool were told that United were poised to seal a deal for Bajcetic, then 16.

But Liverpool's delegation, led by academy manager Alex Inglethorpe, persuaded Bajcetic that Anfield was best for his career and he became the club's last signing under the old regulations.

Thiago has mentored Bajcetic - their fathers Mazinho and Srdan Bajcetic played together at Celta - and he slotted in to a closely-knit Spanish speaking group also featuring Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Milner.

In a further indication of his versatility, Bajcetic was originally earmarked as a central defender but the club feared he might be too small to compete with physical Premier League defenders.

It also didn't take long to realise his game married a tough-tackling approach taken from his Serbian father, also a midfielder, and the intelligence and silky touches more akin to a Spanish player.

Having started out with the Under-18s, Bajcetic was fast-tracked past the Under-21s after Klopp and his assistant Pep Lijnders recognised his potential.

Injuries to key midfielders this season further accelerated his progress, with a senior debut coming of the bench in the 9-0 thrashing of Bournemouth back in August and a first start against Derby in the Carabao Cup in November.

His first Liverpool goal came in the 3-1 league win at Aston Villa on Boxing Day - only Michael Owen and Raheem Sterling had netted at a younger age for the Reds.

He received a standing ovation from his team-mates when he walked back into the changing room at Villa Park - a symbol of his popularity within the group.

Of late, Bajcetic has started every game and another measure of how highly he is rated at Anfield came last month when his progress was rewarded with a new long-term contract.

Klopp is understandably keen to keep the youngster's feet on the ground. 'Pretty good,' was his low key assessment of Monday night's performance.

But actions speak louder than words and the fact Klopp has been fully prepared to trust an 18-year-old in his midfield during what is a challenging time for Liverpool tells you how highly Bajcetic is regarded.

They really needed that 2-0 win over their local rivals having won just once in seven games since the turn of the year. Liverpool are still a lowly ninth in the table but will hope it was a turning point.

There's no reason to suggest Bajcetic won't be trusted again when Liverpool travel to high-flying Newcastle this Saturday or take on Real Madrid in the Champions League next week.