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We got our first real glimpse of 18-year-old Real Madrid phenom Vinícius Júnior during Real Madrid’s shock 1-0 defeat to Alaves on Oct. 6, but that appearance (his second for the senior side) was still just a 10-minute cameo.
The Brazilian cost Real over $50 million, but he’s been largely limited to appearances for the Castilla (Real’s reserve team), although his performances in Spain’s third tier (including three goals and one assist in four appearances) led to Cultural Leonesa president Felipe Llamazares calling his presence unfair.
But with Real currently sitting fourth in the LaLiga table with only four wins from its opening eight matches, there’s a feeling that the young attacker is going to be given his opportunity now.
He further outlined his potential this weekend when providing a spectacular assist for Brazil’s U-20 side against Chile. The man who finished the chance? That’s 17-year-old Santos phenom Rodrygo, who will join Real in June of 2019 after the Spanish club shelled out $52 million for his services.
Yes, the two’s combined age of 35 is still two years younger than Zlatan Ibrahimovic, but it’s impossible not to get excited about Brazil’s most acclaimed young talents.
“(Vinicius) will be a superstar but he has to be given time because he is still very young,” said Roberto Carlos. “He is acquiring a lot of experience at Real Madrid. It might seem that he is ready to play in the first team but, for the moment, he is going through the affiliated teams. I am sure that in a few years he will be demonstrating the great promise he has.”
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