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Is Vinicius Junior Worth The $48.5 Million Real Madrid Payed?

By Luis Castillo

Brazil´s Vinicius Junior poses with the best player trophy in the South American U-17 football tournament in Rancagua, some 90 km south of Santiago de Chile on March 19, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / MARTIN BERNETTI (Photo credit should read MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images)
Brazil´s Vinicius Junior poses with the best player trophy in the South American U-17 football tournament in Rancagua, some 90 km south of Santiago de Chile on March 19, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / MARTIN BERNETTI (Photo credit should read MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images) /
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After signing for Real Madrid for a staggering $48.5 million (not including bonuses paid to private parties), a lot of us were left wondering whether this is the best buy of the decade or the worst buy of the decade. Vinicius Junior isn’t even set to make an appearance for Real Madrid until 2019, but there’s already a major divide among fans. Here are the arguments for both sides:

(Photo by Levi Bianco/Brazil Photo Press/LatinContent/Getty Images)
(Photo by Levi Bianco/Brazil Photo Press/LatinContent/Getty Images) /

Why Vinicius Is A Great Signing

Let’s not keep pretending we still live in a world where player prices are reasonable. We’re talking about a world where Mustafi’s transfer fee was around $45 million and Paul Pogba went to Manchester United for $115 million.

While we can agree that they’re good players, they’re hardly the best at their respective positions. Statistically speaking, forwards tend to be far more expensive than midfielders and defenders. As the footballing world slips deeper into inflated player prices, we’re bound to see more signings like this.

But lets not even talk about the present. Let’s talk about the year 2011.

Back in 2011, there was a young player setting Brazil ablaze with raw speed and talent. While FC Barcelona denied it at the time, they were already beginning the process of signing Neymar. At the time, Neymar was 19 years old. Barcelona came to an agreement with Santos and Neymar was put aside for them until he was ready to make the move. Sound familiar?

Barcelona paid around $90 million just in club transfer fees. While it sounded crazy at the time, it seems like a bargain now.

He is easily a top 10 winger and has yet to reach his prime. Vinicius was one of the most impressive players in the U-17 CONMEBOL Championship and is off to a good start in the Brazilian Serie A with Flamengo.

$48.5 million could end up being a bargain if he turns out to be world-class like fellow countryman Neymar. Plus, Vinicius might prove to fill the void of not having Kylian Mbappe without having to pay the ridiculous transfer fee Monaco have set for him.

Why He Could Prove To Be A Huge Mistake

For all the hype he’s generating and all of the potential he shows, Real Madrid still paid for just that: potential.

We don’t know how Vinicius will develop. Football fans love to hype up Brazilian youngsters all the time but for every Neymar, there are 19 Denilsons. Vinicius might be one of those players who play great at the Brazilian level but the European stage might prove to be too much him. He could end up being injury prone. He might not even develop much past his current level.

Sure, he was exceptional at the U-17 tournament, but that’s a competition that consists of teenagers. He has less than 90 minutes of playing time at the league level, and no one really knows how well he’ll play once he starts getting regular playing time.

Related Story: Real Madrid agree to terms with Vinicius Junior

There’s also a point to be made about Florentino Perez’s financial choices. It’s no secret that Real Madrid were also after Neymar and that Barcelona signing him was a huge blow to Perez’s pride.

Vinicius might very well be an impulse buy to make up for “the one that got away.” Florentino’s impulse decision’s don’t always turn out to be the smartest ones (Makalele being a prime example), and this gamble could go either way.

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