A new report has laid bare the attacking relationship between Real Madrid pair Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe, insisting the Brazilian and Frenchman have yet to strike the harmony expected of them two seasons after teaming up in the Spanish capital.
Marca newspaper rate Vinicius and Mbappe as Real Madrid's biggest stars and their sharpest attacking weapons. Yet the partnership has never quite become a collective threat, despite the enormous individual gifts of both men.
Real Madrid have played 125 matches since Vinicius and Mbappe first appeared together, according to Marca, on 14 August 2024 in the UEFA Super Cup clash against Atalanta.
The two started 89 of those games. Real scored 192 goals across them, but only 19 came from direct collaboration between the pair, a rate of just 9.8%.
Widen the lens to every goal since Mbappe arrived and the number climbs to 269, which underlines how few have flowed from the direct link between the two stars.
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Where goals have come, the balance tilts firmly towards Vinicius as the creator. The Brazilian has started most of the attacks Mbappe finished off.
Of the 15 direct contributions that began with Vinicius and ended with a Mbappe goal, three came from penalties the winger himself won.
Last season alone, the tally from direct collaboration fell to nine goals, with seven of the contributions starting from Vinicius and just two from Mbappe.
Nor did the picture brighten at the start of the 2026-2027 campaign, Marca add, with neither player contributing directly to a goal in Real Madrid's opening official match.
Both looked below par, Vinicius especially, wrestling with the opposition's defensive shape and unable to unleash the dribbling and individual spark that make him so dangerous.
Marca reckon this partnership is one of the most pressing files on the desk of new head coach Jose Mourinho: to develop it and forge the individual quality of Mbappe and Vinicius into a genuine collective force.
Two seasons in and side by side, Mourinho's task is clear. He must find the formula that makes the pair click the way Real Madrid crave, rather than leaning forever on what each can conjure alone.