When Neymar Jr. was preparing to leave Santos FC and begin his career in Europe, Real Madrid showed interest in landing the young Brazil international star. Nonetheless, Los Blancos missed out on Neymar as he chose their rival FC Barcelona.
Since then, Real Madrid has scooped up the latest young hot prospect to come out of Brazil, despite their cost. In 2017, the Spanish club spent €45-million on Vinícius Júnior, a teenager with Clube de Regatas do Flamengo.
It was the second most expensive sale in the history of Brazilian football, only behind Neymar Jr. As a result, there’s plenty of pressure placed on the now 20-year-old forward to be the next Neymar.
The Neymar connections for Vinícius don’t stop at the money, but the potential as the Real Madrid forward could be the next superstar for the Brazil National Team. Renowned Brazilian football federation academy instructor and ex-fitness coach at FC Bayern Munich Marcelo Lins Martins compares Vinícius to Neymar as a player in an interview with Marca.
“Vinícius Jr is 20 years old. He is very young. If they go slowly with him and the job gets done well over time, he’s a player who could be the new Neymar,” Martins said.
However, Vinícius has experienced his ups and downs while with Real Madrid. Furthermore, Los Blancos have considered possibly loaning out the Brazil international with Les Parisiens being a club interested, according to El Confidencial.
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