Why Arsenal need a player like Vinicius Junior
Europe’s elite clubs are on high alert as Vinicius Junior enters the final 12 months of his Real Madrid contract.
With no imminent suggestion of a renewal in Spain, The Athletic revealed that Arsenal are exploring a deal to bring the 26-year-old to the Emirates Stadium.
The left side of Mikel Arteta’s forward line needed strengthening last season. Neither Gabriel Martinelli nor Leandro Trossard provided the attacking potency expected of title winners, with just seven Premier League goals between them in 2025-26.
A skewed focus on their right side of attack meant Arsenal risked becoming too predictable. A shake-up to their left flank is a priority.
Trossard’s departure for Besiktas has made way for the arrival of Greece international Christos Tzolis, but Vinicius Jr would provide a sprinkling of star quality on Arsenal’s left as they look to defend their Premier League crown.
Few football fans need reminding of Vinicius Jr’s qualities.
As a relentless dribbler, fleet-footed ball-carrier and high-volume shooter, you cannot avoid the Brazil international’s presence every time he dances along the left touchline for club and country.
Only three players in La Liga averaged a higher rate than his 7.7 take-ons per 90 minutes last season, and few wingers in world football offer such a dual threat of attacking and creative qualities.
Give him half a yard and he will unleash a shot; stifle his space and he will pick out a team-mate to inflict damage elsewhere. As The Athletic’s player dashboard outlines, he guarantees attacking output.
His qualities would be welcomed by Arteta for countless reasons but there are two particular tactical conundrums that Vinicius Jr could solve.
Against sides looking to go toe-to-toe with Arsenal, Vinicius Jr’s transitional, counter-attacking threat would make opponents think twice about committing bodies forward and could punish teams in the blink of an eye.
With a tendency to stay on the last line of the opposition defence in the wide channels, Vinicius Jr’s runs in behind defences can stretch the game, knowing that he has the speed to pull away from defenders.
An example of this is shown below during the second leg of Madrid’s Champions League play-off against Benfica, when a loose ball is pounced upon by Federico Valverde — and Vinicius Jr instantly starts his run. A composed finish beyond goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin was inevitable.
Arsenal were commonly tasked with breaking down defensive opponents last season, and while they often found a way to overcome those hurdles — via late winners or set pieces — there were frustrating performances that kept tensions high at the Emirates.
Individual quality and a moment of magic can often be the key to unlock a stubborn defence, and Vinicius Jr has frequently been the difference for Madrid.
In the second half of their 2-0 win against Espanyol in La Liga last season, Vinicius Jr pulls inside to receive the pass with eight opposition bodies tightly packed ahead of him. A forward-thinking pass to Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Jr continues his run to complete the one-two before finishing sharply. It is a goal of his own making, creating space where few others could find it.
Through dangerous crosses, earning corners and fouls, or cutting inside to shoot on his stronger right foot, there is an unpredictability to his actions that should be celebrated.
Goalkeepers can struggle to read where he places his efforts on goal, with that Espanyol game offering perfectly contrasting examples. His two goals came from similar locations but note where he places his shots — one to the far post, and another tucked into the near side.
The numbers back up the eye test, with Vinicius Jr showing a similar propensity to direct those efforts to the near post (chosen 20 per cent of the time) and far post (24 per cent) when he gets into his favoured left-sided zone. Such unpredictable and sharp shooting would be the precise trait that Arteta requires.
It is worth noting just how much space Vinicius Jr takes up in Madrid’s attacking real estate.
Madrid’s attacking focus is skewed heavily to the flank where Vinicius Jr and team-mate Kylian Mbappe operate, with 43 per cent of their attacking touches coming down their left third of the pitch in 2025-26. No side in La Liga had a higher share.
Arsenal’s attacking balance needs to improve. As the graphic below outlines, that focus towards the right side has been a feature of Arteta’s side for some time — but the skew is increasing as greater responsibility is given to Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka and Noni Madueke.
Only West Ham United had a higher share of their attacking touches in the right third of the pitch than Arsenal’s 42 per cent among all Premier League sides last season.
Arsenal’s 2022-23 season was their most balanced in recent memory. Saka, Odegaard and Ben White formed an excellent triangle, while Martinelli was in form on the left before Trossard’s arrival in the January transfer window.
The midfield presence of Granit Xhaka and technical quality of left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko meant that Arteta’s side had coherent networks of attack with similar devastation on both flanks.
Should Vinicius Jr’s move materialise, a new left-sided triangle involving Declan Rice and one of Arsenal’s left-back options could restore that balance.
Given Arsenal’s recent success has been built on rock-solid defensive foundations, the obvious question over Vinicius Jr’s potential signing would be his willingness to work back when his side are out of possession.
That has not always been guaranteed during his time in the Spanish capital, as he has often been absolved of defensive responsibility to maximise his attacking threat.
Madrid’s qualities have often helped them get away with a looser defensive approach but Arteta is likely to feel uneasy at the prospect of his team carrying a passenger when Arsenal do not have the ball.
Vinicius Jr’s four ‘true’ tackles — tackles plus challenges lost plus fouls committed — per 1,000 opponent touches is below La Liga’s average for an attacking player last season, which does not signal a strong propensity to stick a foot in.
A return of 1.5 ‘true’ interceptions — interceptions plus blocked passes — per 1,000 opponent touches falls within the league average, implying that his off-ball intensity would need refining if he played in the Premier League.
The blame cannot be placed solely at Vinicius Jr in the example below but it signals the potential danger when the gaps between the attack and midfield line are gaping defensively. Neither he nor Mbappe make an effort to close down Alaves midfielder Antonio Blanco, who therefore has time to beat Madrid’s back line with a lofted pass, from which Carlos Vicente scores.
Had the pair been 10 yards deeper and more defensively aware, this sequence would have been avoided.
While Vinicius Jr’s defensive shortcomings should not be overlooked, his attacking qualities far outweigh any negatives.
Should Arsenal pursue a deal, it would represent a huge signing for the club and the Premier League.