How Real Madrid are mining the next generation of Galacticos straight from Brazil

Real Madrid have snapped up Vinicius, Rodrygo and Reinier straight from Brazil, showing that Florentino Perez is planning for a next generation of Galacticos.

There’s just something about Brazilian soccer players. They come with a certain romance. They stereotypically embody all that is great about the game. All the good bits. All the flair and exuberance and all the stuff that puts bums on seats and then gets them up off them again.

Soccer is fascinated with Brazilian players and Real Madrid have a stronger obsession than most.

Ronaldo, Roberto Carlos, Kaka, Robinho, Julio Baptista… they have rolled through the Santiago Bernabeu over the past few decades, satisfying Florentino Perez’s fascination with stars of the South American country. The Real Madrid president views Brazilians, with all their preconceived sparkle and shimmer, as the perfect embodiment of his trademark ‘Galacticos’ ideology.

But while the signing of Kaka and Ronaldo were archetypal ‘Galactico’ additions, captured for big money having already achieved great things elsewhere, the latest crop of Real Madrid Brazilians are somewhat different. In Reinier Jesus, Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior Los Blancos now boast three of the best teenage talents the country has to offer.

Indeed, these three players could be considered the face of Brazilian soccer’s next generation. Over €100 million was splurged on luring Reinier, Rodrygo and Vinicius to the Spanish capital, but this outlay represents what they might go on to achieve in the game rather than what they have already achieved.

Rodrygo and Vinicius have already made their mark. The latter was a breakthrough star of an otherwise forgettable 2018-19 season for Real Madrid, quickly capturing the imagination of a Santiago Bernabeu crowd desperate to find a new darling following the surprise exit of Cristiano Ronaldo the summer before.

Vinicius’ first season at Real Madrid was curtailed by injury and it took a number of months for the 19-year-old to rediscover his form and confidence upon his return for the start of this season. Recent displays, most notably in the Clasico win over Barcelona, suggest the winger’s trajectory will continue to swing upwards. For all his flaws, of which there are many, Vinicius still shines brighter than almost every other teenager in European soccer at this moment.

Rodrygo is one of the few who can challenge Vinicius in that regard. There are striking similarities between the two players, not just in their position and nationality, but in the way they play and see the game. Both are tricky wingers with pace to burn and flair to spare. Both are unpolished diamonds, but diamonds nonetheless.

Then there’s Reinier. Signed from Flamengo for a fee of over €30 million in the January transfer window, the 18-year-old has yet to make his Real Madrid debut, but has been likened to Kaka. Reinier is a central playmaker much like the former Ballon d’Or winner and is expected to become a senior squad figure for Zinedine Zidane next season. Real Madrid could certainly use a player of Reinier’s mold, with James Rodriguez and potentially Isco as well expected to be moved on in the summer.

Brazil might be renowned for boasting the sport’s deepest talent pool, but Real Madrid are one of the few elite level clubs willing to take a deep dive. They are going direct to the source to capture the country’s next generation of superstars. Real Madrid have spent big, but their outlay would surely have been bigger still had they allowed another European club to poach them first. They have been proactive in a difficult market and will be rewarded further down the line for that.

Real Madrid are in the midst of a generational transition and they have placed a lot of stock in Reinier, Rodrygo and Vinicius being the face of the club for years to come. Not for the first time, the Santiago Bernabeu has become a home for Brazilian soccer’s brightest and best. Just how Perez likes it.