Seems like he's turning out to be a right baby. Probably fishing for a huge contract. Real should call his bluff and let him waste his career playing in front of 12 people for 100m a year in the desert.
Vinicius Junior
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In the latest edition of the United Hour Podcast, Nik (@Rood), Imran (@Annihilate Now!) & Jamie (@Vault Dweller) celebrate a fantastic victory as Manchester United won 2-0 in the Derby. They celebrate the changes Carrick has made, discuss our new coaching team and find time to play a Stupid Game. Enjoy!
But if anything, past few years have shown they are easy to replace. Go get your fat paycheck, but that is the only thing you will get down there, bar the occasional international tournament with the national team.
If Saudi league has shown anything, it is only how much football is bigger than any single name to play it.
So, if fat paycheck (not like Madrid pays you peanuts anyway) is worth fading into obscurity, than yeah, go on and do it.
Doubt Brazilians mind playing in the desert, it's all the same outside of Brazil. See Oscar Emboaba or Hulk.
That doesn't make much sense. Being an "asset" is simply a function of him being more valuable to the company he's contracted to than most other workers are, meaning that he can demand more (hence the high wages) and should therefore voice those demands during negotiations.
That it often makes sense for ordinary workers to not want to work for certain bosses means that it makes more sense for superstar professional footballers, because there's higher demand for their services.
For footballers the negotiations are more important than for ordinary workers as well. Typically people who don't like their wages and/or bosses might still accept a position, but then continue job searching and leave/renegotiate at the first opportunity. Of course finding a new job isn't easy for many, but for many others it is. When footballers accept a proposal they risk being stuck for years because they need their employer's blessing to leave.
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The state of him.
When's he showing us why he should win the ballon d'or?
I honestly wouldn't mind red cards for that type of filming.
He declined massively since Madrid won their last CL. He was arguably the best winger in the world from 2021-2024.
When they lost Kroos.
That's a huge stretch, especially with the likes of Salah being around. He did exceptionally well in CL though.
To say he was arguably the best winger in the world from 2021 to 2024 is not a huge stretch at all. He was even touted as the best player in the world, let alone the best winger.
He seems to have lost his way since Mbappe came to Madrid, however.
Didn't see say "I will do 10 times more if necessary. They are not ready"... looks as if he was not ready and it was a one off season for him.
He's still only 25, there's plenty of time for him to write a new chapter. It just might not be with Real Madrid.
If he goes to Saudi though, that really will be the end. Another European giant could help him get back to his best.
This player, when focused, is devastating and unique. But I think his head has been lost amidst talk of the most ridiculous contract in football, the Saudi league offer. I also wonder whether he is getting pressure from certain people back home. He would be a national asset to Brazil with his income. I am sure many politicians, business people, and nefarious others would be keen to get a piece of him.
He’s had one season when he was talked about as the best player in the world or thereabouts. Deservedly so, but even that year his league form was struggling. Vini’s overall level of performances in recent years gets a bit overestimated nowadays, mostly because he saved his best performances for those big European nights. He’s not really comparable to, say, Salah, especially on the back of a multiple season spell.
Unfortunately.... the way football is going, there is probably 1 or 2 other clubs that can afford the wage he wants.. other than Saudi.
Someone who has had 1 top class season, he wants Mbappe level money... is not justified. When you look at everything else.
Attitude - Poor
Workrate - Poor
Diving - Top tier
Sulking - Top Tier
Not many clubs are looking for those characteristics.
He has more than just one great season, he is a top tier player that got drowned by multiple issues, some he is not at fault at all, others he could have managed better and would be better if he focus more on his game. Yet there still a player there and it's not a bad bet for any big player at all.
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At his best, he's a better player than Salah. Salah is not really a winger anyway, but more a forward, and more of a goalscorer. Vini Jr is technically a better player and made the FIFA World 11 in 2023 and 2024 (which Salah has never been selected for), so it's not like he's only been elite for one year, like you and others are claiming.
Saying he's only had one top tier season is just false.
Disagree that he's a better player. His play style is easier on the eye and he's a more technical dribbler, but I don't think those things make him a better player. I think it's really a case of preferences, isn't it?
Can he play as a wingback during a cold tuesday night at Stoke?
A player who has never hit 20 league goals...
Well yes, I guess so. I think Vini has had better performances at the highest level though.
Scoring in multiple Champions League finals is worth any number of goals against Burnley or Levante. And he's not a prolific goalscorer anyway, there are plenty of good attacking players who are not.
Kind of hypocritical here... saying he isn't a goal scorer then saying well, he scored in multiple CL finals so he is a top tier player?
Not hypocritical at all. The volume of goals is not the only factor, it's also when and where you score them and who you score them against. That's the way it's always been in football. However, I judge overall by performances, and the ones I've seen from Vini in the biggest games against the best teams in the most important competition have been better than the equivalent I've seen from Salah. Not just goals, but everything. I'm not sure that's debatable. I mean, Liverpool actually won the Champions League and Salah was deemed Liverpool's third best player in the subsequent Ballon D'Or voting. That award is not the be all and end all of course, but that fact does speak to something.
Leaving this aside, to affirm that Vini it's more technical than Salah, the gap shoudl be notorius in such regard and I don't feel it as clear.
I agree thought that Salah it's not a real winger and Vini is, that this last one as a more classic winger it's more dribbling oriented too and that the whole making FIFA World 11 does not mean that much, great players or even at least greats seasons from players many times have been overlook, but indeed Vini didn't just have one great season, he indeed had like Harms said a season in particular that he was clutch as hell in Cl and that gives bonus points in perception.
Vini also did sthg that it's extremely hard to do, and he is not precisly my cup of tea as a player and personality wise, yet credit when its due, to be as nervous as he was a little kid in such hard enviroment Real is, to play even really bad quite a number of times, and overcome that and become such a great player it's quite a task that has been overlook.
Played like a man who wanted Alonso sacked tonight. Brutal.
Nah, he just played badly, which has unfortunately been happening far too frequently of late
I actually thought he was decent towards the end.
Interesting to see how a guy whose stock was so high has struggled so much. I don't think anyone could have predicted it would go sour so quickly (if he does get the boot).
He's still a really young guy, and we should have perhaps forseen that he would find it difficult managing huge stars. Someone like Ancelotti is a master at that, but then he has 30 more years of experience.
I remember when Pep took over at Barca as a young guy, and he was allowed to get rid of some of the giants, in order to get control of the team. I'm sure Alonso would like to be able to do the same.