From criticizing Montjuïc to becoming Real Madrid's executioner

BarcelonaMay 11, 2025. The day that changed Víctor Muñoz's life (Barcelona, ​​2003). The former Barça and Real Madrid youth player was making his debut with the first team at Montjuïc in a Clásico. With the score 4-3 against them, Carlo Ancelotti brought him on in the 88th minute for the injured Vinícius. The winger had a clear chance – one-on-one with Szczęsny – to score the equalizer and become Madrid's hero, but he sent the ball wide. This sparked a wave of hateful comments on social media, with Real Madrid fans calling for his "retirement" and departure from the club, forcing Muñoz to disable comments on his Instagram. The young Barcelona native would get a few minutes against Sevilla and in the first two matches of the Club World Cup before leaving Madrid for Osasuna in mid-July.

The Navarrese club paid five million euros for 50% of the player's rights, and he signed a contract until 2030 with the Pamplona-based team. "He was an unknown quantity for the fans, but he's making a very good impression. Braulio, the sporting director, said that if he had scored that goal at Montjuïc, he would surely have stayed at Real Madrid," comments Borja Bernarte, a journalist for Navarra NewspaperHowever, Real Madrid retained a buy-back option for the next three seasons. "He was aware that he wouldn't get playing time at Real Madrid, and Osasuna is a good environment for young players to develop. This January, Sunderland offered €25 million for him, but he didn't leave. Muñoz is comfortable in Pamplona and there won't be any forced departure in the short term. He needs to be smart, and those close to him know he needs to work things out."

At just 22 years old, he hasn't missed a single league match since arriving in Navarre and has started in 23 of the 25 games played so far. He has undergone a process of improvement and adaptation to the league. "He stands out for his speed, exceeding 30 kilometers per hour. In the first few matches, he went into every play and was one of the first players substituted due to fatigue, but now he has learned to choose when to go forward and completes the full 90 minutes. Now he needs to improve his decision-making, but it's all part of the process," Bernarte explains. On Saturday he was one of the standout players in Osasuna's victory against Real Madrid (2-1)It had been fifteen years since Osasuna had beaten Real Madrid. The Barcelona winger was very incisive down the left flank, completing four dribbles (out of six attempts) and delivering three successful crosses (out of four attempts). He also had two shots that were blocked.

Muñoz is the third player in La Liga with the most completed dribbles (56), tied with Vinícius and only surpassed by Mbappé (62) and Lamine Yamal (107). Those who shared a dressing room with him aren't surprised by this statistic. "He was a very fast player, with a lot of skill and ease in one-on-one situations. He was very clear that when he had the ball he had to beat you and he wasn't afraid to fail. If he didn't succeed, he'd try again," recalls Martí Alba, who faced him in training with the Damm youth team when he played as a full-back and Muñoz as a winger. The current Catalan U-12 coach also explains that on the field "he was very audacious," just as we're seeing now in La Liga. The Barcelona-born attacker stands out for his speed and ability to receive the ball in behind. "Ancelotti always told me to be myself, to make runs into space, like at Castilla," Muñoz explained in an interview with the newspaper. AceA quality he's always possessed. "When we lacked tactical ideas, it was always a long ball towards him, and he'd outpace them with his physical strength," explain those who shared a locker room with the player in the youth ranks. This season, his first full season in the top flight, he has four goals and one assist for Osasuna, along with an 80% pass accuracy.

From La Masía to La Fábrica

Víctor Muñoz began his playing career in the youth ranks of Sant Gabriel. In 2014, he signed for Barça's Under-12 A team, where he played alongside Alejandro Balde. After three years at La Masia, progressing through the Under-14 B and Under-14 A teams, he moved to Damm, where he continued his development until 2021. That summer, he swapped Barcelona for Madrid and began his professional career. At Real Madrid, he played for the Under-19 A and Real Madrid C teams before joining the reserve team, where he spent two seasons. Under Raúl González, he scored thirteen goals and provided seven assists in 63 matches in the Primera Federación (Spanish First Division).