All eyes are on Vinicius Junior ahead of Real Madrid's Champions League clash against AEK Athens. The Brazilian returns to the city that staged one of his finest displays last season, and he does so during a rough patch, with competition for his place mounting thanks to the fine form of Ivorian Diomande.
Cast your mind back to his last visit to Athens on 26 November 2025. Vinicius drove Real Madrid to a 4-3 win over Olympiacos, setting up two goals for Kylian Mbappe after an exceptional performance. The pick of them came from a superb dribble past defender Panagiotis Retsos.
A year on, the picture looks very different. The Brazilian has fallen short of the levels expected of him, and he needs the AEK Athens tie to rediscover his spark. The Champions League offers a crucial chance to compensate for his four-match suspension in La Liga.
Diomande threatens Vinicius's standing
Pressure on Vinicius keeps building. Diomande has produced such striking performances that he now poses a genuine threat to the starting spot.
The Ivorian has scored in three of his last four matches against Sevilla, Leipzig and Racing. He also impressed against Barcelona in the Clasico, despite failing to find the net.
Jose Mourinho sent a clear message when asked about Vinicius, insisting that the player who wants to keep his place must prove it through his level and his performance on the pitch.
Figures reveal the Brazilian star's decline
According to a report by the Spanish newspaper "AS", Vinicius's decline shows clearly in his numbers, particularly in dribbling and his effectiveness in front of goal.
The Brazilian completes a successful dribble every 28 minutes, compared with once every 25 minutes for Kylian Mbappe. Diomande comes out on top with one successful dribble every 17 minutes.
In front of goal, Vinicius needed 27 shots to score his only strike, against Real Sociedad last August. Jude Bellingham managed four goals from the same number of attempts.
Arda Guler scored three goals from 25 shots, while Diomande hit his four from just 17 attempts. The figures lay bare the gulf in attacking effectiveness between the players.
Yet Real Madrid and Mourinho still cling to Vinicius as one of the team's most important assets. They are working to help him recover his customary level, convinced that solutions exist to make the most of the players' abilities together, especially as Diomande can also play on the right flank.
The biggest challenge facing Vinicius remains clear: rediscovering the form he showed on his last visit to Athens, when he was Real Madrid's number one threat. Competition within the squad has never been fiercer.