Franco Mastantuono did not have to pick a favourite. He did anyway.

Asked on Italian DAZN’s My Skills programme which teammate from his Real Madrid season he admires most, the Argentine answered without working his way around the question. The remarks were carried by Infobae on 5 November.

“I love Bellingham, he’s my favourite player at Real Madrid. Although there’s Vinicius, Mbappe, Valverde, Brahim, who’s fantastic,” he told DAZN.

Mastantuono spent last season at Real Madrid after arriving from River Plate, before heading to Italy on loan this summer.

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Mastantuono’s Madrid verdict

He described the Madrid chapter as a happy one.

“At Real Madrid they have treated me incredibly well, I mean the people at the club, my teammates, amazing.”

The context for the interview is his current club. Fiorentina signed Mastantuono on a season-long loan in August 2026, the agreement running to 30 June 2027, with Real Madrid retaining his rights, no purchase option attached, and both clubs splitting his salary.

Into the Serie A record books

The loan has delivered on the pitch. Mastantuono scored Fiorentina’s third goal in a 4-2 win over Sassuolo, taking him to four goals in his first 10 Serie A appearances. At 19 years and 80 days, he is the joint-second-youngest player to reach that mark, level with Mohammed Kallon and behind only Alexandre Pato.

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The loan runs until next summer, when Real Madrid will decide the 19-year-old’s place in their 2027-28 plans.

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