Real Madrid have a serious problem with Kylian Mbappé, and Vinicius Jr. The defeat against Arsenal brought to light what has been seen throughout the season and what most Madrid fans did not want to acknowledge, or refused to acknowledge, and that is that the two stars detract more than they add to the team when they play together.
Vinicius infects Mbappé
Vinicius’ season gets worse as the big games come around. Yesterday was confirmation that the Brazilian player is not, nowhere near, at the level he has shown in other seasons. It’s not that things aren’t working out for him, that’s part of a footballer’s career, he may have worse or better moments, but it’s about the attitude of a footballer. Against Arsenal, as well as not being involved throughout the game, it seemed that his commitment to the team was going to be better, that was the impression in the first minutes of the game, but little by little that commitment that Ancelotti, his teammates, and now a good part of the white fans have been demanding for so long was fading away.
That lack of commitment, that lack of teamwork is holding his teammates back, especially in attack. We shouldn’t save Kylian Mbappé from this defensive work, it’s not like he helps much, but he does try harder than his teammate, but he’s not willing to work for him, among other reasons, because it gets him nowhere if he doesn’t receive help from his teammate.
However, the Frenchman, given the difficulties the team suffered in London, sought to help the team, he would retreat his position to give an outlet, he offered himself with a certain criterion in search of solutions. He had a more active attitude in the collective than the Brazilian, who seems to be waiting to receive the ball just to make his move.
However, when Real Madrid attack, they bet everything (and only everything) on individual talent, but it seems that they don’t quite understand each other. Vinicius moves wherever he wants, he goes it alone, which conditions Mbappé and clogs up the team’s attacking line. The Brazilian was missing, stuck to the wing, where he really does damage.
Poor rapport between them
The most obvious thing is the lack of rapport between them. The quality of both has disguised their lack of understanding for long stretches of the season, but in important games they seem to combine more because they have to than for footballing reasons. There is no discernible pattern to their combination play, and against top opposition they do not create the danger expected of these two players.
Against Arsenal, Mbappé had two clear chances, following a pass from Bellingham who understands everything. Vinicius had one chance from an individual move. But the only chance they had between them, ten minutes into the game, with every opportunity to score the first, the Brazilian decided to drive forward in a move that invited a direct pass to the Frenchman to leave him alone. The feeling from that move was that Vinicius was looking for extra prominence: if Mbappé is going to score, let’s be clear that I made the move.
The struggle of egos is weighing Real Madrid down, but in this struggle, it seems that only Vinicius is fighting, more focused on showing off than on playing. The truth is that when the Brazilian has not played, Mbappé has shone, but this season it has not yet happened the other way around.
Solutions to the problem
Ancelotti does not seem to have found the solution to the problem. As he said at a press conference, “the best ones always have to play”, but then he is not capable of making them play as a team. There are already many who believe that Real Madrid should choose one of the two, and it seems that in that decision, the Brazilian could be very badly affected.