A Spanish press report on Tuesday lifted the lid on the sharp drop in form of Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior this season.
The newspaper “Mundo Deportivo” said the 2-1 defeat in the Madrid derby against Atletico Madrid at the Wanda Metropolitano left Real Madrid reeling.
Several players now find their performances and conduct under the microscope as a wave of criticism batters the team. The three-week international break could hand them a golden chance to steady the ship.
One name stands out above the rest. Vinicius Junior’s level has plummeted this season, and his display in the derby was nothing short of catastrophic.
The Brazilian was a strong candidate to join Arsenal under Mikel Arteta last summer, but he eventually renewed his contract with Real Madrid.
Radio station “Cadena SER” reported that Vinicius’s teammates had accepted his departure in the last transfer window, and were even convinced of it.
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According to the report, “several sources consulted by the radio station believe that Vinicius’s crisis dates back to the summer, when many of his teammates expected him to move to Arsenal”.
It continued: “The contract renewal negotiations were not going well. In England, they wanted to make him the global face of the Premier League, alongside Haaland, and his teammates assumed he would leave in the summer”.
The radio station added: “He did not leave, but Real Madrid’s players believe he has left mentally. His teammates in the dressing room like him, but it is difficult for him to regain the affection of the Bernabeu fans. His performance on the pitch is not improving, and the spectre of sitting on the bench looms on the horizon, and this may be the most important question after the break: will Mourinho keep Vinicius, the pivotal player at Real Madrid over the past five years, in the starting line-up for longer, or will Diomande snatch his place?”.