REAL MADRID
Will Vinicius play for Real Madrid against Mallorca in LaLiga?
The Brazilian returns to the squad for the first time since November - will he play against Mallorca?
Vinicius Jr has already worked his first miracle of 2024: be ready for the first game of the year. Despite early predictions putting the winger out until February, Vini Jr was included in Carlo Ancelotti’s squad for Real Madrid’s game against Mallorca in LaLiga EA Sports (KO 1.15 p.m. ET / 10.15 a.m. PT.).
The Brazilian has cut down his recovery time by an entire month, and ahead of the game there is even the possibility that he makes it into the starting XI against two players - Matteo and Raíllo - who were both at the centre of attention alongside Vini in the return fixture.
Ancelotti undecided on whether to play Vinicius or not
Ancelotti kept his cards close to his chest when asked whether or not Vinicius Jr was in line to start against the islanders, saying that he “still had not decided. I have to speak to the player and doctors.” He did, however, hint that the winger had “shown himself to be very, very good in training”.
Vinicius came back from international duty with Brazil in November with a hamstring injury to his leg leg, according the club’s official statement on the 18th of the month. As is common with Madrid’s public messages, they did not give a return date but news filtered out that an 8-10 week absence was pencilled in for the forward.
The second leg against Leipzig in the Champions League looked like the earliest return for the player, who was set to miss out on January’s tasty Spanish Super Cup and the first leg of the Round of 16 in Europe.
What is Vinicius’ record this season?
It seems that the injury was not as serious as first thought, and the Brazilian has found it comfortable to overcome his physical issues. The same thing occurred with the injuries his suffered against Ajax (1-4) in the 2018/19 season and against Celta (0-1) this season. This season has already been a long road for Vini, who has missed 11 games of 24 so far.
The time in the recovery room has seen Vinicius’ stats plummet: in the 2021/22 season he scored 22 and got 20 assists; last season he managed 23 goals and 21 assists. As for the current campaign, however, he has just 6 goals and 4 assists in 13 games, but that is still one goal involvement every 97 minutes. If there is a player in the side who can bring that number down, it is Vini Jr.