Real Madrid fans concerned about Vinicius Junior’s role
Losing a pre-season friendly against Barcelona is not the end of the world for Real Madrid. Ousmane Dembele, Fermin Lopez and Ferran Torres found the back of the net for the Catalan giants while Los Blancos struck the woodwork on five occasions. The match was much closer than the 3-0 scoreline would suggest. That being said, Carlo Ancelotti has things to think about.
One of them certainly has to be the role of Vinicius Junior in the team. With a change in formation, the Brazilian was playing more centrally up top along with Rodrygo.
Vinicius has been one of Real Madrid’s best performers over the past two seasons and is arguably the club’s franchise player right now following the departure of Karim Benzema. But he certainly does not look at his best in a more central role.
As the game wore on, Vinicius drifted wider and that is when he started to showcase his qualities better. His performance did leave fans concerned about his new role.
Real Madrid fans concerned about Vinicius Jr’s role
Real Madrid fans did not seem particularly convinced about the idea of playing Vinicius more centrally and let it be known on Twitter:
The diamond looks to maximize Bellingham’s abilities but it mitigates Vini’s impact. Vini played far too much with his back to goal.
— Matt (@MattW_MM) July 29, 2023
Noticeable how few numbers we get into the box in the final third and with Rodrygo often dropping deep, no focal point up top.
Got better as the half wore on, unlucky not to score 1-2 goals. Concern with Vini in this role is he's often in a position he has to receive the ball with his back to goal and play like a hold-up striker. Not his best role.
— Kiyan Sobhani (@KiyanSo) July 29, 2023
Vinicius im beyond disappointed with this preseason performance. I understand he is being placed out of position in a new system but this performance is very disappointing.
— Dr Ignacio 🇨🇦 ¹⁴ (@DrNacho_RM) July 29, 2023
At the end of the day, it is a new role for Vinicius and it is only natural for him to take some time to adjust to the new demands and requirements. We need to see a bit more of him centrally before reaching a decision.
That being said, Vinicius is arguably the best player Real Madrid have right now. He is certainly the one with the ability to create something out of nothing.
So, Ancelotti has to find a role for him in which he thrives. If things don’t work for Vinicius centrally for an extended period of time, then it could end up hurting his confidence.
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