Although many Real Madrid fans were hoping for the club to prioritize the right back position this summer, it doesn’t seem like Los Blancos are planning on going in that direction in 2022.
Dani Carvajal redeemed himself after some rough performances, including back-to-back disasterclasses against PSG and Barcelona. He produced one of the most memorable right back displays of the season when it mattered most in the Champions League Final, shutting down the electrifying and in-form Luis Diaz.
Behind him, Real have the underappreciated Lucas Vazquez, who ranks highly among right backs on an intercontinental scale. He is great in one-on-one duels and at progressing the ball, making up for his lack of size. Vazquez has picked up the nuances of the right back position well.
But while Real Madrid could potentially scrape by another year without investing in the right back position, they definitely need to monitor right backs over the long-term.
Vanderson has been an immediate success at Monaco
Sporting CP’s Pedro Porro has long been spotlighted as the top option, but Real Madrid should think beyond him. Lyon’s Malo Gusto is an 18-year-old sensation deservingly getting shouts, too, but there is an even better young right back in Ligue 1 worth discussing more.
Vanderson joined Monaco from Gremio for 11 million euros in the winter transfer window, and the 20-year-old immediately established himself as one of the best players on the team that finished third in Ligue 1.
It is rare for a young right back to play that well, especially a young right back who had literally just joined a new team at the winter transfer window. We would normally expect a defender to have to transition to a new league and a new team in the middle of the season, but Vanderson hit the ground running in a way that few right backs did. He was legitimately one of the best players in the league at the position.
A good two-way presence at right back, perhaps Vanderson’s only weakness is that he does not have an EU passport…yet. That would be the one headache for Real Madrid, because they just signed another talented young Brazilian right back on loan in Shakhtar Donetsk’s promising Vinicius Tobias.
Vanderson is more proven at the top level, though, and he is better defensively. So he should still be worth considering, especially if he reaches even greater heights in 2022/23. Considering he would have a full offseason under his belt and a half-season of Ligue 1 experience, it’s scary to think what he can do next season.
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So Real Madrid absolutely must put Vanderson on their shortlist of right backs. Along with Gusto and Porro, he is one of the top three prospects at the position. You never know how things can shake out in the future, but we do know this: Real have close eyes on Monaco. From James Rodriguez to Kylian Mbappe to Benoit Badiashile and now to another player they have actually signed in Aurelien Tchouameni, Real have long had eyes on this prestigious Ligue 1 club. Vanderson could be the next big thing from Monaco.