It is Vinicius moment. But he seems to have a hard time seeing himself on paper. At least when he’s off the field. In the celebrations he was smiling among the group but shy if he had to stand in the front row. Benzema pulled him into the institutions to give him the place he deserves… Like Ancelotti. Then he let go. Vini now has gallons. The most important Brazilian footballer, even ahead of Neymar.
It was the coach Tite himself who put on the track of such a particular overtaking with recent statements made in Brazil. “For me, Neymar is no longer a wing player. If I used him there, it would wear him down too much. And he needs to be fresh to create. He has to build. And I have an idea of putting up a drawing without the ball where he can start From there…”. The message is very important for a man, Vinicius, and he made a huge impression on the team that surrounds the madridista. In fact, it follows from him that Vini has the door to the World Cup open as a starter.
Tite also praised the madridista: “His growth is spectacular. I know him well from the Copa América”, said the coach. “But look, Ancelotti has a very large part of the blame in the evolution of Vinicius Junior. In this sense, many times I feel a bit like a thief of the work that other technicians do”.
for Tite, Vinicius’s fundamental change has been his confidence in the shot: “I know that Vini has done an important specific finishing job in Madrid. A basic requirement has been asked of him: precision. I usually tell my footballers a story. When the great Ronaldo Nazario worked the completion he did it from medium distance. And there he used to say: ‘I don’t try to distance my shot from the goalkeeper too much’. Why did he say that? Because he already had the possibility that the ball could go a little off course. And if that happened, he would find the goal. That in the middle distance. Not in the short. That is a zone of precision, to turn the foot, to deceive. To feint the goalkeeper, to show up on one side and shoot for the other. Y that medium distance shot is the one that Vini has improved a lot. That has given him a lot of confidence for the rest of his game. That’s why he went from six to 22 goals…”.
Vinicius has been delayed in his explosion in Madrid but he has arrived resoundingly. With 21 he has played 170 games with the white shirt. He is the most influential Brazilian player… And the most expensive: valued at 100 million by Transfermarkt, ten more than the second, Neymar. It’s Vinicius time.