A one-time star member of the attacking ranks at Barcelona has this weekend given his backing to Real Madrid standout Vinícius Jr, in the race for the next Ballon d’Or.
Vinícius, for his part, has of course seen his name take its place front and centre in the headlines across Europe once more over the week to date.
This comes after the Brazilian was responsible for a Man of the Match display, to ensure that Real’s Champions League dream for the season remains very much alive.
En route to a 2-2 semi-final first-leg stalemate with Bayern Munich, Vinícius notched both of Los Blancos’ goals.
This proved far from the first occasion on which the 23-year-old has come to the fore when his side have needed him most this season, with Vini’s haul of 21 goals and 11 assists in 34 appearances speaking for itself.
And one individual of the opinion that such exploits could yet see his fellow countryman named world football’s best player, comes in the form of Rivaldo.
Speaking in an interview with Betfair, as cited by DAZN, this week, ex-Barcelona standout Rivaldo was adamant that Vinícius is in with a real shout of being named the latest winner of the Ballon d’Or:
“Vini Jr scored two goals in Real Madrid’s Champions League semi-final first leg at Bayern Munich and my compatriot is the standout player in Europe today.
“He has been one of his team’s main players this season, showing a lot of desire. The team has adapted to his way of playing and he is a great candidate to win the Ballon d’Or if Real Madrid win the Champions League.
“He’s already among the top three players in the world without being a champion of anything.
“Now, if Madrid get past Bayern next week and go on to win the Champions League, Vini has a great chance of being the best player of the season.”
Conor Laird | GSFN
