Real Madrid concerned after Vinicius Jr.'s poor start to the season

After an extraordinary 2023-24 campaign, Vinicius Jr. might be the designated Ballon d'Or winner. However, the start of the 2024-25 season has been a little bumpy for the Brazilian forward, as he has yet to reach his previous form.

Since the Real Madrid-Espanyol fixture at the Bernabeu, Vinicius Jr. has struggled to keep his head in the game. He has struggled to keep consistency and falls for controversy too easily, as we saw during the Madrid derby.

Vinicius Jr. seems to be somewhat 'disconnected' from the game. He lacks focus throughout the 90 minutes and lashes out at rivals too often.

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The Brazilian forward is arguably one of the best wingers in the game and can turn the score around within seconds. So far this season, he has scored 3 goals and given 7 assists in 11 games, according to Transfermarkt.

He has shown signs of improvement, but Real Madrid remains concerned about the Brazilian winger for several reasons—particularly on a psychological level. He must work to regain his best form and prevent these issues from impacting his performance and the team's overall play.

The first issue to consider is the pressure he is subjected to in every game from the stands at the stadiums. He is now the target of many fans who wish to mock him, and you see this every away match.

No matter what stadium he visits in Spain, he is booed and shouted at by fans. A topic that has been amplified since the Brazilian emerged as a champion against racism in the world of football.

The Real Madrid player himself easily gets involved in these provocations, losing his focus and therefore harming the flow of the game.

This is nothing new. Last season it became a common recourse for his rivals in matches against Real Madrid, and it is something that has not changed this season, as was demonstrated in the fifth match against Real Sociedad, when Vinicius Jr. silenced the Anoeta crowd after hearing whistles against him from the first minute.

In this regard, journalist Antón Meana pointed out on Cadena SER that Vinicius Jr. "is losing support and followers within the club" due to his attitude in recent matches and warned that "there are several voices within the club that are demanding that he step forward and they do not like that he is more focused on other issues than 100% on his football."

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Another obvious reason for his change in form is the arrival of Kylian Mbappé at Real Madrid. The French star has arrived with superstar status - above Vinicius Jr. himself - and is also a player who tends to occupy the same positions on the pitch.

Since his arrival at the club, Carlo Ancelotti has tried to keep Vinicius Jr. in his usual position, where he usually performs at a higher level: the left wing. At the same time, he places Mbappé as the natural forward.

This situation creates a significant imbalance in attacking play, as both players naturally swing to their favourite positions - the left wing.

The Spanish publication El Desmarque highlighted how the Brazilian star would avoid Mbappé to the point they would barely look at each other on the pitch.

Former Real Madrid player Álvaro Benito discussed this in the newspaper AS, noting that Vinicius Jr. has been impacted by Mbappé's arrival. "He was the star of Real Madrid," Benito explained, but now Vinicius seems to be overshadowed by the Frenchman's presence.

Benito also believes the Ballon d'Or campaign is generating unwanted pressure on the Brazilian star.

A media campaign has been launched against him, where some journalists don't see Vini Jr as a fit Ballon d'Or winner. Instead, they have been advocating for other candidates like Spaniards Rodri and Carvajal, or even his teammate Jude Bellingham.

On top of all this, there was the dizzying offer that arrived at Real Madrid's offices at the end of the summer transfer window from Saudi Arabia, offering him a five-year contract and a salary of over 1 billion euros. This was confirmed by Khaled Al-Issa, director of Al-Ahli.

According to ESPN Brazil, Vinicius Jr. didn't fully deny the offer and is willing to keep options open in the near future. A stance that didn't sit too well with Madridistas.

The match against Atlético de Madrid derailed the Brazilian and also impacted the Real Madrid squad. He needs to keep his head in the game longer and squeeze out some top-class performances to regain his team's full confidence. Regardless if he wins the Ballon d'Or or not, he needs to 'change the chip' on the pitch.

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