Suck it up, Kylian! Vinicius Jr remains king at Real Madrid despite Mbappe's arrival

Vinicius has come a long way. The kid that arrived at Madrid from Flamengo was immensely talented, but remarkably unrefined. He spent his first few months at Castilla, the youth team, before being promoted to the senior side. And there, under the tutelage of Zinedine Zidane, he struggled. There were moments of quality, but the lasting memories were chances wasted and wrong decisions made. It all culminated in a now-infamous incident in which Karim Benzema was caught on camera telling Ferland Mendy not to pass the ball to the Brazilian, claiming "on my mother, he is playing against us".

The quote inevitably went viral, and only damaged Vinicius' reputation. Here was the second most expensive Brazilian teenager ever, heir apparent to Ronaldo, dubbed a flop before he really had time to adjust. And of course he did. There isn't exactly a glowing track record of Brazilians being thrown into top-tier European competition with immediate success. Even Neymar, a clear future star and viral talent from his teenage years, needed a year to find his form at Barcelona.

But putting on the Madrid white, and stepping out in front of an expectant Santiago Bernabeu, doesn't leave much wiggle room for mistakes. The 'flop' allegations hit quickly.

Ironically, for Vinicius, it was the man who once called him out that truly helped him develop his career. There was a vague sense of steady improvement throughout his first three seasons in Madrid - his attacking numbers improving, his starts more frequent. He certainly had a lot to offer.

Benzema, though, unlocked it in full. The duo developed a deadly partnership over the course of the 2021-22 campaign, Vinicius playing a key role in the Frenchman's Ballon d'Or quest and Champions League heroics. The Brazilian assisted Benzema 11 times over the course of the season, and the Frenchman returned the favour on eight occasions. Vinicius finished the season with 40 goal contributions in all competitions - his best return yet - and also scored the winner in the Champions League final. Benzema, meanwhile, scored 44 for Los Blancos and won the Ballon d'Or by the biggest margin in history.

The Frenchman would leave a year later, of course. But it mattered little for Vinicius. He had been unlocked.

You would not expect a player of Mbappe's quality to be overshadowed, however. After all, this is PSG's all-time top goal-scorer, a World Cup winner as a teenager, and the man who almost prevented Lionel Messi from completing football with a scintillating hat-trick in Qatar.

The issue with Mbappe, though, is that while Vinicius has developed year by year, Mbappe has arguably stagnated. He is still among the best players in world football, but he has rarely adapted or changed; he still plays as an inside forward; he still breaks out the same moves that defenders can't stop; he will still score 30 goals per season without breaking a sweat.

But he hasn't markedly changed in the other elements of his game; he isn't an elite passer, nor particularly tactically flexible; defensively, he is something of a liability, something Luis Enrique highlighted in an impassioned speech last spring: "You're a phenomenon, world class. But that's not enough for me. I need you to lead when it comes to pressing and defending. Do you know what we will have then? A f*cking machine. That's what I want from you in these two months you have left [with PSG]. I want you to go out in style."

Mbappe largely ignored his protestations. PSG were eliminated in the semi-final of the Champions League, and the Frenchman effectively took the last few months off - his manager eager to rotate him out of the side. Even Thierry Henry, perhaps Mbappe's biggest proponent, admitted that PSG might just be better off without him.

Piecing everything together in Mbappe's new digs hasn't been easy, either. There was always going to be a tactical conundrum for Carlo Ancelotti, having Vinicius and Mbappe - who play in the same position. Throw in the fact that Jude Bellingham also likes to occupy similar areas, and Rodrygo is reluctant to stay on the right, and there was reason to be concerned about how all of this would come together.

Mbappe has been forced to convert in a way, playing either as a No.9 or occasionally on the right. Ancelotti has made it clear: the left wing spot is Vinicius' to lose. And although the goals have come - Mbappe has eight in all competitions - it doesn't quite look like a coherent system. Neither player is particularly willing to track back, and Madrid are too easily caught in transition. It culminated in Bellingham, who has willingly adapted to a deeper-lying role, caught on camera screaming at the duo to defend in a 2-0 loss to Lille in the Champions League.

But perhaps Ancelotti's decision, in and of itself, tells the real story here: Mbappe is the one who has to adapt - not Vinicius.

Mbappe made headlines last week when it was revealed that the France captain would refuse to play certain international games he deemed unnecessary. The Frenchman, he made clear, would excuse himself from the kinds of fixtures that his country could win without him. His idea, a report from Foot Mercato suggested, was that skipping some matches would make him fresher for the bigger ones - where he could perform and increase his chances at winning the Ballon d'Or.

The reaction wasn't particularly kind; Mbappe was maligned by many for 'giving up' and acting selfishly. And in a way, the anger made sense. Mbappe wears the armband for his country; the game's other greats - Vinicius, Haaland, Lionel Messi, and Cristiano Ronaldo - travel to the far corners of the globe to play for their country. Mbappe isn't injured; he was, in effect, doing something incredibly self-centred.

It is admittedly impossible to know the internal politics of Madrid's dressing room - and whether those who do put the work in are pleased with Mbappe's decisions. But it does perhaps speak to a wider problem: Mbappe has, for some time, been a singular entity; he orchestrated PSG's marketing campaigns by angry tweets; he influenced tactics with the use of grumpy Instagram stories; he held his club hostage for a year when he knew that a Madrid move was on the cards.

Vinicius, meanwhile, has always been willing to adapt. he has altered his potion when Ancelotti changed things in the Champions League against Manchester City last year. He has improved vastly, year on year. He is a sparkling player, but never a selfish one. And that is what makes him worthy of the Ballon d'Or - and shows why he might win many, many more.

Of course, it is early days in Real Madrid's latest evolution with October only just drawing to a close, but the first Clasico of the season provides a reference point for Los Blancos' progress to be measured against.

After all, this fixture is a king-maker, where careers can be made and broken, and on the eve of Vinicius' coronation as 2024's Ballon d'Or winner, Mbappe will be making a first play to snatch his crown under the lights at the Bernabeu on Saturday night.

Vinicius, though will be confident of holding on to his throne and is arguably the more likely to make an impact against the club's eternal rivals. Real Madrid thought they were signing the best player in the world; what they didn't realise, perhaps, is that they already had him.