The general consensus among Real Madrid fans is that Vinicius Junior is having a disappointing start to the season at Real Madrid. That is true. It is not really up for debate.
Vinicius Junior is not really performing the way he has performed when he's at his best, and he just does not look his absolute freshest at the moment. There have been some moments where he hasn't looked that sharp, and despite having a lot of game time during the season, and also in pre-season, he has not really improved the way everyone expected him to by this point.
However, he is still not the most disappointing player on the pitch for Real Madrid this season. The most disappointing player for Real Madrid, despite only playing a game and a half, less than a game and a half, is Álvaro Carreras.
Vinicius Junior never had his job on the line like Alvaro Carreras
It might sound harsh to say that about him, but with Carreras, context is really important. Vinicius Junior always turns up. He always does really well, and despite not having the best start to the season, he's still got a goal and two assists to show for his performances, and he also won the free kick that led to Real Madrid's first goal against 5-0.
Against Malaga, he looked better with the ball and dribbled past opponents well, and also created chances for his teammates. Carreras played less than a game and a half, and he had a decent performance against Espanyol, but then a really abysmal one against Real Sociedad.
The latter one is where Carreras' mistake directly led to the opposition's goal, and he was immediately hooked after halftime. The reason why it is really important to know why he's so disappointing, even more so than Vinicius Junior, is that the Brazilian is coming off a taxing season where he played basically every single match for the club.
He also played some matches in the World Cup - and was Brazil's best player in the competition.
Carreras, on the other hand, has had the longest time to sit and dwell on what happened last season and improve the way everyone expected him to. Last season, he did not play most of the second half of the games.
Last season, he did not play much under a reported falling out with Alvaro Arbeloa. He would have been fresh during the season break, especially considering he also wasn't in Spain's squad to play at the World Cup.
If you combine all of that, you get a player who knows he's not had the best first season at the club. He also knows that one of the best left-backs in the world is coming in to take his place in the starting eleven next season.
As any competitive player would, Carreras had the chance to work hard and improve his level as much as possible. Instead, he had a decent performance against Espanyol, and then had a shocking first half against Real Sociedad.
That is just so disappointing as a Real Madrid fan, because Carreras has had so long to improve his level and stay consistent. He has all the more reason to do that now than ever before, because his starting spot is in immediate danger because of the arrival of Marc Cucurella.
For him to not care enough to have two straight games without making a mistake is more disappointing than Vinicius Junior playing the way he's playing now, after such an incredibly taxing season that also affected his body from a physical standpoint.
Hopefully, in the next game that he plays, Carreras improves his level and shows that he is still good enough to compete for the starting spot. But at the moment, despite only playing a game and a half, you cannot find anyone more disappointed with him than me.
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