Coming into the 2024/25 LaLiga season, the biggest topic of conversation surrounding Real Madrid was the ability of the quartet of attacking superstars to be able to work with each other after finally completing the blockbuster signing of Kylian Mbappe.
Specifically, Real Madrid needed to prove that they could find a way to fit three players who are all at their best as left wingers together. Already, Rodrygo Goes had proven capable of moving to the rights side of the attack to help Vinicius Junior shine on the left wing.
So now, the issue was how Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe would work together as two players widely considered the very best players in the world, with another new Real Madrid star, Jude Bellingham, right there with him.
Like Rodrygo, Bellingham already had a clear path to moving positions to accommodate the Mbappe signing, shifting back to a No. 8 role – which he played regularly at Dortmund – from the No. 10 position he so flawlessly executed for Real Madrid in the Champions League and LaLiga-winning 2023/24 campaign.
So far, the early returns for Real Madrid have been less than ideal, as the Merengues drew both Las Palmas and Mallorca in games they would be expected to win, whereas Barcelona were undefeated.
Even when they beat Real Valladolid 3-0 after a great second half, Mbappe wasn’t a part of the scoring spree, nor did the win seem nearly as impressive when Barcelona tore Valladolid apart 7-0.
So after watching Barcelona dismantle Valladolid, the pressure was on Real Madrid to nab a convincing three points against their most difficult LaLiga opponent to date, Real Betis.
Once again, Real Madrid started slow, but, by the end of the match, they answered a lot of critics by winning 2-0, with Mbappe scoring twice in a match in which the entire front three played well.
Mbappe’s first goal came as a result from some brave dribbling by right winger Rodrygo and a beautiful backheel assist from the spellbinding Fede Valverde, and his second goal was even more straightforward than a simple finish – a goal from the spot.
But it’s how he scored the goal from the spot that may have been the biggest takeaway from Real Madrid’s win. It was Vinicius Jr. who won the penalty in usual fashion, dizzying the Betis defense into a foul.
Normally, when a superstar forward wins a penalty for themselves, they take the penalty, especially if it is over a player who is less “senior” in terms of years with that specific club.
Instead of taking the penalty for himself, though, which he would have been well within his right to do, Vinicius Jr. offered the penalty to his new teammate, Mbappe, even though Mbappe had already gotten the weight of his first Real Madrid goal off his back.
The “altruistic” gesture was praised as such by manager Carlo Ancelotti, and it has been a gesture of goodwill that has Real Madrid fans positively buzzing. It is a tangible signal of the budding camaraderie between Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe – a sign that both young men are willing to make this partnership work.
Whether Mbappe plays in the middle like Karim Benzema or both Vinicius Jr. and Mbappe play off each other as two-man forwards at the expense of Rodrygo in the lineup, we can see the glimpses on the pitch of how their skill-sets mesh and can make each other better.
Every reasonable person knows that it takes time to build chemistry, especially when we are talking about two titans with the future upside of superstars like Mbappe and Vinicius Jr.
Vini Jr.’s willingness to put Mbappe first may have cost him one goal personally, but it will yield more goals for both the Brazilian and the Frenchman going forward.
As always, Vinicius Jr. is wise beyond his years, investing a moment of kindness with the full intention of watching it become a decade of record-breaking success.
