Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho believes that, in the right environment, Vinicius Junior can regain consistency and become a defining factor for the team again and his conviction in it is "unwavering."
He trusted him at the start of the season, and he still does, to this day - and that will not change for a while. This is according to a report from AS, who have talked about Vinicius Junior extensively after the Madrid Derby.
Vinicius Junior was perhaps the worst player on the pitch for Real Madrid for yet another game against Atletico, as he struggled to have an impact on the proceedings of the game.
Real Madrid needed a lot from him on both sides, and Vinicius Junior's defensive work rate, even though it has been great over the course of the season so far, was severely lacking against Atletico.
If you talk about his offence, that was probably even worse, as he lost the ball many times and was a non-factor in many moments until his early substitution in the 52nd minute.
Real Madrid simply needs more from Vinicius Junior than just one goal and three assists in eight games. He is supposed to be one of the most consistent and best performers for this team, and yet, when it comes to good matches, he has had only one so far this season. The problem isn't just that, either. It is the fact that Mourinho is not really realising the actual truth about Vinicius Junior.
Vinicius Junior simply cannot be that guy for Jose Mourinho on a consistent basis anymore, by the looks of it
Vinicius Junior has been in the right environment for the last two seasons. If we talk about the right environment in terms of a winning environment, that simply cannot be a factor for a player's performance to improve.
If you can only play well when the team is winning, then what is the point of you doing that? If in this case, the right environment is that he has the consistency and the backing of his coaches and his teammates, and he keeps playing until he becomes the Vinicius of old again, then that's what everyone's been trying to do for the last two seasons.
The second half of the 2024-25 season under Carlo Ancelotti was very similar because Vinicius Junior was clearly struggling in those moments. Then Alvaro Arbeloa played him for quite a bit last season, tried to give him as much of a confidence boost as he possibly could to finally get him to be consistent again.
It kind of worked because Vinicius Junior was playing better, but it just wasn't happening in every single game, and it wasn't happening as consistently as it used to a few years ago.
The truth that Real Madrid needs to realise is that maybe Vinicius Junior just isn't that player on a consistent basis anymore. He will have some performances where he blows everyone's minds, but for the most part, he just does not look like he will ever be the consistent Vinicius Junior of old again.
He is probably at his worst point since joining Real Madrid at the moment. If things don't improve now, and if he still keeps starting for Real Madrid, that will be detrimental to the rest of the team because they would have a player who is not performing at his best and is still consistently starting every game.
If Mourinho wants that to change, he would have to bench him sooner or later. Hopefully, the name that Vinicius has and his reputation at Real Madrid do not play into account for this particular situation, because that is the last thing that Real need.
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