Real Madrid: Don’t be too critical of Vinicius Junior for showing his youth
By Hasan Karim
The dust has settled a little following the mammoth clash in El Clasico last night between Real Madrid and Barcelona. The game had many talking points and one of those was the debut Clasico of wonder-kid Vinicius Jr.
Vinicius Jr was given plaudits by many following his 60-minute appearance against Barcelona at the Nou Camp. The Brazilian teen showed some genuine promise throughout the game as his side were held at a 1-1 draw.
However, along with his moments of promise, he also fluffed his lines a few times. Naturally, in a fan-base that is as demanding as Real Madrid, you will automatically be not so keen on seeing these elements of his game. Whether it be making the wrong decision with his pass on a counter-attack or shooting when he had a better option on – mistakes were made. However, let’s all remember, Vinicius Jr is only 18 years of age, playing in one of the biggest club games on the planet at one of the biggest clubs in the world in just his very first season of European football.
So far with the Brazilian this season, we have seen it mainly go his way. He’s consistently beating his man, consistently creating danger with most of his passes – the list goes on. However, this was his first big game and you could see at times he was a little overwhelmed.
So far this season we have lauded his maturity in his thinking processes and against Barcelona, it was visible that he got a little over excited and was trying hard to impress the eyes of those in the stadium. This is merely part of the process when introducing such a young and raw player.
Vinicius with an abysmal performance so far.
— Lucas Navarrete (@LucasNavarreteM) February 6, 2019
What is needed is patience and understanding. The biggest issue at a club as large as Real Madrid is the weight of expectation and there are plenty of examples of players who were derailed by that. Look no further than Marco Asensio, he was seen as the next big thing last season and his reward for such promise? The expectation of carrying this mammoth side who’d just lost the greatest player in their history, not only carry that but also fill the void of that said star. As a result? Asensio has not kicked on and has lost that swagger and confidence because of the burden he bears.
Compared with our rivals younger stars such as Arthur at Barcelona. Whilst some are lauding his presence, he’s being allowed to make mistakes, which he did in last nights game. However, nobody was calling his performance out for being abysmal. His upturn in form and development has been from understanding and showing patience toward his inexperience, in return? He’s stepped up with big performances.
Vinicius Jr undoubtedly possesses frightening potential. He showed it in the game, he stood up Pique with tricky feet in the lead-up to the first goal as his cross found Benzema who touched it down for Vasquez.
Next. First-leg draw in the Copa del Rey a good result for Real Madrid. dark
Whilst he could have scored or created another goal a couple of times, he made the mistakes of somebody with little experience. However, he will mature and develop on this and will become an even bigger asset. He needs to be given the chance to make mistakes and not be labeled for doing so.