Vinicius Junior signed a new Real Madrid contract, but according to a Cadena SER report picked up by beIN Sports, the summer’s near-move to Arsenal is what he has still not been able to shake.
The Spanish broadcaster’s account, relayed on 22 September, says teammates inside the Real Madrid dressing room genuinely expected the Brazilian to leave for Arsenal during the previous transfer window. Talks over an extension were stalling, the Premier League club were pushing, and even after the renewal was eventually signed, the uncertainty was said to have left a mark that has followed him into the new season.
The evidence is on the pitch. Vinicius has scored just one goal in eight appearances at the start of the 2026-27 season, and has been substituted in three consecutive games, including the derby defeat to Atlético Madrid.
Arsenal, the ultimatum and the renewal
Real Madrid had spent the summer signalling that the negotiation was over. In late July, Sports Illustrated reported the club had adopted a “take it or leave it” stance, with Vinicius on €17m net a year, seeking €30m and offered a raise to €20m. Arsenal were named in the same report as “an opportunistic suitor” at exactly that moment.
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The move never happened. Vinicius stayed, agreed new terms, and the story appeared to close. beIN Sports’ account, sourced to Cadena SER, is that inside the squad the story did not close at all: the player, according to sources cited by the radio station, “may not have been able to fully move past that situation.”
Mourinho’s message: a proverb and a challenge
José Mourinho, in his first months back at the Santiago Bernabéu after being named head coach on an 11 June deal that runs to 2029, has answered the Vinicius question in two different registers.
After the 2-1 Champions League win over Inter Milan, when sections of the Bernabéu had whistled the Brazilian, the Portuguese defended him with a phrase reported by Goal.
“In Portuguese, we have a proverb that says we only throw stones at the trees that have fruit,” Mourinho said, pointing to the Brazilian’s honours and record for the club.
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A few days later, on 14 September before the trip to Elche, Mourinho’s tone was less protective, as Sports Illustrated reported.
“His best performance is scoring goals. Assisting is important, working for the team is very important, the daily work is important and he does it very well. But there’s another Vinicius. A Vinicius who arrived at Benfica last year and who gets one chance, scores a goal, and goes home. He’s lacking this top-level performance,” the manager said.
That verdict came a week after Vinicius had publicly promised a 16th European Cup for the club, calling the Champions League “our competition.”
The seat that is no longer guaranteed
The starting place, so long automatic, is now openly in question. beIN Sports’ report names Yan Diomande, the young left-winger, as an internal alternative, and Kylian Mbappé’s growing gravitational pull at the top of the attack has added competitive pressure on Vinicius rather than relieving it.
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Former goalkeeper Esteban Suárez put the risk in plain terms.
“Mourinho will take him out and there will be people applauding. There are people who can’t wait for Vinicius not to play,” Suárez said.
“A lot of people have hurt Vinicius by praising and excusing too many of the things he’s done.”
Real Madrid return from the international break at the weekend, and Mourinho’s first team-sheet since his Elche press conference will be the first read on whether the Vinicius he described as “lacking” is back in the starting XI.
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