Vinícius Júnior’s imperfect conception
Back in 2017, the Maracanã waited with bated breath for their young genius…
Words:
Tim VickeryImages:
Let me tell you a tale of two recent Brazilian imports to the Premier League. West Ham brought in Luis Guilherme from Palmeiras, a teenage winger with a grand total of one professional goal to his name. Wolves acquired André from Fluminense, a central midfielder and established international who played a key role last year in his side becoming champions of South America. Since then, Luis Guilherme has hardly been seen, while in his first month, André was chosen as Wolves’ best player by the club’s supporters. The sting in this tale is that according to the press reports, West Ham spent more on Luis Guilherme than Wolves did on André.
This is the contemporary market in action. Luis Guilherme is 18. He could come good. André is already 23. Like some kind of futures market, the European clubs have given priority to potential. They no longer take the best players in South American football. They want those with the biggest promise.
One move stands out above all the rest as a symbol of this state of affairs, a deal that serves as a marker and one which has added momentum to the new trend. That, of course, is the transfer that took Vinícius Júnior from Flamengo of Rio to Real Madrid. In May 2017, Real offered some €45 million for a 16-year-old who had yet to play a senior game. It has turned out to be a multiple Champions League-winning risk worth taking. But at the time, it looked like madness.
True, he had just given show after show in the South American Under-17 Championships. But this can be a notoriously unreliable guide. Under-20 stars usually slot into senior football with few problems. But Under-17s? The history of the game is littered with adolescent sensations who proved unable to make the transition.
One thing was for sure. Flamengo fans were desperate to see him.