LaLiga: 19-year-old Real Madrid star, Cucalon retires from football

Real Madrid youth player Marc Cucalon has announced his early retirement from professional football due to a rare infection he contracted in 2022.

Born in Zaragoza, Cucalon made the difficult decision to stop playing football after a two-year battle with the bacterial infection in his knee.

The Real Madrid midfielder, who captained the club’s Juvenil A team in 2022, had played alongside Nico Paz, who now plays for Como, in the academy.

Cucalon’s career was cut short after he suffered a ruptured ACL during a match against Celtic in the UEFA Youth League in September 2022. Despite undergoing surgery to repair the ACL, a bacterial infection developed in the cartilage used during the procedure, preventing him from returning to the field.

Unfortunately, the infection has left Cucalon unable to participate in any physical activity involving his knee since the injury.