Translated by

Mbappé overshadows Vinícius’s best performance

Mbappé's presence does not suit Vinícius's style of play.

Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappé has seen his goal-scoring form dip since suffering a knee sprain in early December, an injury that has clearly hampered his performance.

In his absence, Vinícius Júnior has seized the reins of the attack, injecting pace and confidence into a side that had briefly looked adrift.

Since then, Los Blancos have produced their best football of the campaign, eliminating Manchester City from the Champions League and remaining in the La Liga title race with Barcelona.

Mbappé has missed seven matches since the start of 2026, paying the price for the strain on his knee and handing the goalscoring reins to his teammate.

Getty Images Sport
Vinícius shines in Mbappé’s absence
According to Spanish newspaper Sport, Vinicius has rediscovered his form while French teammate Kylian Mbappé is sidelined.
According to the Spanish daily, the Brazilian star has rediscovered his best form and now feels as indispensable as he did before Mbappé’s arrival.
With manager Álvaro Arbeloa’s full backing, the forward has become Real Madrid’s top scorer since the start of 2026, netting 12 goals—two more than Mbappé—despite playing 770 additional minutes.
Beyond the goals, which signal his return to form, Real Madrid have also closed the spaces between their lines and rediscovered the style of play that defined them last season.
Supporters savoured the display, which came without both Mbappé and Bellingham on the pitch.

Getty Images Sport
Mbappé upsets Real Madrid's balance
That optimism proved short-lived: Mbappé’s return has failed to boost either the team or Vinícius, and the value of Bellingham’s input is still unclear, given Arda Güler’s impressive form in the same role.
Insiders are now asking whether Mbappé’s role disrupts the team’s equilibrium.
As Sport puts it, “The big question is whether Mbappé is upsetting Real Madrid’s balance due to an individualistic tendency that focuses solely on scoring goals, whilst neglecting collective duties.”
Mbappé himself admits he tracks back less than his teammates, a habit that undermines the system designed by Arbeloa.
Getty Images Sport
Vinícius and Mbappé are not clicking on the pitch.
The available evidence indicates that Mbappé’s presence on the pitch does not complement Vinícius’s style of play. Vinícius acknowledges that he has not formed the ideal understanding with his French teammate, even though their personal relationship remains strong.
Mbappé often occupies the same zone, fails to read Vinícius’s runs in transition, and does not stretch defences to free up space for his partner; instead, he crowds the Brazilian.
The Brazilian also struggles to make off-the-ball runs into space. Nevertheless, Vinícius has supplied Mbappé with five key passes, whereas the Frenchman has not returned the favour once.