Former Real Madrid goalkeeper Santiago Cañizares has reopened the debate over Vinicius Junior’s future in the Real Madrid line-up, publicly proposing a tactical solution that could reshape the roles of the club’s front line. The club’s results have improved sharply during Vinicius Junior’s absence.
Cañizares’ tactical proposal
Speaking to the newspaper Mundo Deportivo, Cañizares said: “For me, the solution is for Vinicius to play in the role of an out-and-out striker, and to be a substitute for Mbappé.”
Cañizares also said: “Vinicius is a player who cannot be ignored, of course, and Mourinho will not leave him out of his plans. The team can achieve victories with him and Mbappé together, but it will not retain the same identity or the same balance or the same positive atmosphere.” Cañizares believes manager José Mourinho faces a genuine test when Vinicius returns to domestic action.
Vinicius’ suspension and form
Vinicius is enduring a difficult patch on a technical level, with his goalscoring output having dried up and the Santiago Bernabéu crowd turning their criticism on him. He has one goal and three assists in 874 minutes across all competitions this season, corresponding to a goal contribution roughly every 219 minutes.
José Mourinho substituted Vinicius early during a Champions League match against Roma after a technical error that helped gift the opposition a goal. Mourinho also made little effort to hide his displeasure at some of Vinicius’ conduct on the pitch. Vinicius was sent off against Villarreal on 10 October for pulling the hair of opposition player Nathan Salliva.
A disciplinary committee handed Vinicius a four-match La Liga ban: two matches for the hair-pulling incident and two more for his protest against the referee. Real Madrid appealed, but an appeals committee rejected the request to reduce the punishment on 16 October. The ban left Vinicius sidelined for matches against Sevilla, Barcelona, Racing Santander and Valencia, including a Clásico at Camp Nou. Whether he would accept a permanent substitute role is uncertain, given that he was recently regarded as the team’s leading light.
Diomande takes his chance
Ivorian player Yan Diomande was given the chance to feature on the left wing and produced eye-catching displays. He scored a goal and created another in Real Madrid’s 4-1 win over Sevilla, and scored a goal and created another in a match against Leipzig.
Diomande followed those performances with a strong showing in Real Madrid’s 2-1 Clásico victory over Barcelona. He scored again in Real Madrid’s 3-0 win over Racing Santander, then kept his place in the starting XI against Valencia in a 3-0 victory, confirming that he was no longer merely a stopgap in Vinicius’ absence.
Real Madrid’s winning run
Real Madrid won all four La Liga matches that Vinicius missed, scoring 12 goals and taking maximum points. Eight consecutive victories across all competitions followed, with the win over Valencia lifting Real Madrid’s tally to 30 points, three behind leaders Barcelona.
