Vinicius and Raphinha sweeten El Clasico with Brazilian samba
Brazil is a special country. Its beaches, biodiversity and people make the South American giant a power and benchmark in the region.
Football is undoubtedly one of the strengths of a country that has become accustomed to exporting quality sports icons to Europe year after year.
Vinicius (22) and Raphinha (26) are two of the most recent names that have marked Brazilian football. Both play as wingers. They are fast, unpredictable and powerful. Madrid 's Vinicius, dribbler, aggressive and branded as a provocateur by many. Barça's Raphinha; enviable definition on the run, physical and hard-working.
Although they share similar characteristics, the Brazilians have a difference in front of goal. Vinicius has been sharper than Raphinha this season. The former Leeds player has nine goals and nine assists in 37 games played. The Madridista, for his part, completes an enviable statistic with 19 goals and 11 assists, thus becoming a benchmark in Carlo Ancelotti's attack.
Rising from the ashes
Both Vinicius and Raphinha have experienced a similar situation in their adaptation to La Liga. During his first few seasons in Spanish football, Vinicius was criticised by the more radical wing of Madrid fans.
Cristiano Ronaldo's departure from the squad led some fans to search for someone to blame for the obvious lack of goals in 2018/19. As time went on, Vinicius improved. In 2021/22, for example, he completed a dream duo with Karim Benzema that led Real Madrid to win the Champions League. He scored the winning goal in the final against Liverpool.
Raphinha, like his compatriot, was questioned by fans. The signing did not convince many. Although he had performed well at Bielsa's Leeds, the Camp Nou were not convinced. Dembélé's turn to form raised even more doubts.
The Brazilian, however, took advantage of his French teammate's absences to establish himself in the starting XI. In recent games, he has been a star performer; he scored against Valencia at home, had an excellent game in El Clasico in the Copa del Rey and also scored against Athletic in Bilbao. Not bad for a player, who, in theory, came into Xavi's squad as a bit-part player.