Rodrygo’s challenge

59 games and 9 goals. These are the figures for Rodrygo (20 years) in his two seasons in the Madrid. And it is that since he signed in 2019 for the amount of 40 million euros Coming from the Brazilian Santos FC, the right winger has not finished exploding. The irregularity has been the main characteristic of the player in his two years in the capital of Spain: he has alternated good performances in Champions (a total of five goals in the competition since his arrival) with more gray matches in the league. In the national competition he has only scored three goals. To this is added a decrease in his scoring figure in the last season. While in the 2019-20 season he scored seven targets (a good figure for a relief player), last season he only scored two goals.

Real Madrid Shield / Flag

Rodrygo’s goal this preseason is to impress a Ancelotti that he does not know him and that, in principle, he will choose players with whom he has already worked. Thus, competition is the other factor that makes it difficult for the Brazilian to obtain minutes for the next season. Benzema, Lucas, Hazard, Asensio, Bale and Vinicius are above him in an eleven in which there will only be three attackers. In the case of Bale, the Welshman got his best performance at the white club with the Italian on the bench. Together they won a Champions League and a Copa del Rey and several flowers have been thrown in public, which would put the Brazilian at a disadvantage. All this without counting on the possible arrival of MbappĂ©, which would further complicate the Brazilian’s presence in the team.

Vinicius he has been the player he has been compared to since his arrival at Madrid. His age, nationality and demarcation in the field so claimed. However, Vinicius, 21, has shown better conditions than Rodrygo. In his three years at the White House, Vinicius has participated in a total of 118 games in which he has scored 15 goals and has distributed 15 assists. Better figures than Rodrygo’s.

Rodrygo and Vinicius statistics in the 2020-21 season

The physical factor, another problem

Madrid’s preseason sessions have shown that Ancelotti wants to have all his players of a high physical level. The Italian coach puts a lot of emphasis on the physical side and wants all the players to be intense without the ball. Rodrygo, who has very good technique and great speed, lacks, on the contrary, the physical aptitudes of his teammates, which puts him at a disadvantage again. In this morning’s training session, he also worked alone. From the club they confirm that it has been due to an overload in the thigh, a typical injury of the preseason due to the high workload. Thus, Rodrygo begins the preseason at a physical disadvantage with the rest of the players. Throughout this year it will be seen if the Brazilian winger manages to overcome his situation, or if, on the contrary, he plays even fewer minutes than in previous seasons.