Vinicius is not Vinicius

A little bit of Vinicius goes a long way. That’s the truth. It happened against Salzburg. After a dull performance, he scored a brace and nearly a hat trick. It wasn’t dazzling (“I haven’t been feeling well,” he admitted), yet it had bite. And against Espanyol, he threatened with a second goal. Even when not at his best, he made a decisive impact. It was close to a repeat of Muñiz Ruiz’s performance during the tussle between Mbappé and Pol Lozano. Vinicius scored a magnificent goal, but the referee called a contentious foul. He added a few more highlights – a museum-worthy dribble, for instance.

However, that self-pass with the heel, sent straight into his highlight reel, was the only breakthrough he managed out of the six attempts. He tiptoed past Cornellà - just as he has been doing throughout 2025. Amid suspensions, huge offers (from Saudi Arabia) and mixed sensations, Vinicius is not quite being himself.

He arrived at the match against Espanyol with nearly as many absences (three) as appearances (four, now five). In LaLiga, the red card at Mestalla cost the “7 blanco” games against Las Palmas and Valladolid. In the Champions League, his third yellow card against Salzburg left him sidelined for the Brest match – a chain reaction that carried on in Cornellà.

Ancelotti donned his best suit, but only Rodrygo managed to show his true self. And among the four, Vinicius was the least impressive.

And it wasn’t just that he struggled with dribbling. In a departure from his usual game, in a team loaded with left-sided attackers, most of the action came from the right. Rodrygo led in crosses (eight), completed dribbles (three), created chances (three—alongside Lucas Vázquez and Mbappé) and in passes completed in the final third. These were areas where Vinicius did not manage to crack the honor roll.

This sentiment is echoed in his ratings: Bellingham (85) and Rodrygo (84) nearly matched their typical output, followed by Mbappé’s 65—and finally, Vinicius’s 59. He started off fiery but fizzled out as quickly as his goal did.

Down-to-earth

A down-to-earth Vinicius. This year (and not just this season: he has 17 goals and 11 assists overall) and against Espanyol, his stats in completed dribbles (1 versus 2.8), crosses (2 versus 2.4), chances created (1 versus 2.2), tackles won (2 versus 2.4) and successful passes in the final third (16 versus 21.1) were below his averages. He looked for opportunities, especially aiming for goal as he led with five shots. But none of them found the back of the net. There was intention, but not execution. He remains a threat, yet at this moment he is not The Best—a context he is well aware of, both externally and internally.

Watch out, Vini will click again

That is why Ancelotti came to the defense of his star: “Some have forgotten that with Vinicius we won two Champions.” And that is why Vinicius himself offered a mea culpa after his two goals against Salzburg, saying, “I’m happy for the goals, despite playing badly.” Of the quartet, he is the least effective in 2025: Rodrygo has been involved in nine goals (seven scored and two assists) since January 1, Mbappé in eight (all scored), Bellingham in seven (three goals and four assists) and then there are Vinicius’s four (three and one) – along with contributions from Valverde, Güler and Modrić.

But the club is confident it won’t be long before he clicks again – that is, before he returns to being Vinicius.

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