Will Real Madrid Stars Mbappe and Vinicius Jr Finally Click Under Xabi Alonso?

Xabi Alonso’s biggest challenge at Real Madrid is forging chemistry between Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr. Despite their star power, the duo struggled to click last season. Can Alonso unlock their full potential and turn talent into titles this year?

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A New Era Dawns at the Bernabeu

There’s no shortage of star power at Real Madrid this season. With Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr. poised to lead the club’s next golden generation, fans are dreaming of attacking fireworks. But as pre-season training ramps up at Valdebebas, one key question lingers in the minds of the Madrid faithful—and perhaps more pressingly, in Xabi Alonso’s: Can these two global icons truly shine together?

For all their brilliance, last season proved that individual talent doesn’t always translate into collective chemistry. Now, Alonso faces what may be his most nuanced managerial challenge—fostering a genuine connection between two of the game’s most electrifying forwards.

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When Two Suns Try to Share the Sky

Vinicius and Mbappe are not just stars; they are supernovas—players around whom entire teams have revolved. The challenge? Both men love operating from the left flank. It’s where they’re comfortable, dangerous, and instinctive. But there’s only one left wing.

While Mbappe has shown he can drift centrally or even start on the right, the Frenchman’s instincts still pull him wide. Vinicius, on the other hand, thrives in isolation, taking on defenders one-on-one with dizzying pace and flair. The overlap in their styles is not just tactical—it’s psychological. Both are used to being the protagonist.

Last season, that friction showed. In the 47 matches they shared, Madrid's attack sparkled more in moments when one played without the other. It wasn’t an all-out clash, but it wasn’t a seamless dance either.

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The Numbers Don’t Lie

Despite clocking over 3,400 minutes together across competitions, Mbappe and Vinicius only scored in the same match on eight occasions. That’s less than 20% of the matches they played together. Even more telling, they haven’t shared a goalscoring performance since March 9, in a league match against Rayo Vallecano at the Bernabeu.

From that date on, they played together 13 more times. Zero matches with shared goals. For two of the best attacking players in the world, that stat reads more like an early warning.

Then come the assists. Vinicius clearly took the lead as creator-in-chief, tallying 19 assists over the season, with five directly to Mbappe—including two in the hat-trick against Barcelona at Montjuic, a match that may have saved Madrid’s title hopes. In contrast, Mbappe only assisted Vinicius twice—against Espanyol and Girona.

While the Brazilian seems willing to serve, the Frenchman’s contributions in that department have been modest.

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Xabi’s Balancing Act

For Alonso, this isn’t just about formation tweaks or spacing drills. It’s about ego, empathy, and evolution. Both Vinicius and Mbappe are at pivotal stages of their careers. Vinicius is entering his peak, having grown into a leader at Madrid. Mbappe arrives as a World Cup winner, but with the heavy shadow of a stuttering PSG chapter behind him. They need each other—but they may not know it yet.

Xabi’s job is to make them believe it.

It starts with trust—on and off the pitch. Trust that each can elevate the other’s game. Trust that sharing the spotlight won’t dim their individual brilliance. If Alonso can embed that mindset into the dressing room culture, Madrid could have a forward line that rivals the very best in club history.

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A Glimpse of What Could Be

There have been flashes. That 4-3 thriller against Barcelona, where Vinicius selflessly teed up Mbappe twice, showed what’s possible when the pair clicks. But those moments were rare. The Club World Cup didn’t help matters—Mbappe was sidelined with illness for most of the tournament, and by the time he did start against PSG, Madrid were overrun and overwhelmed.

It was a symbolic low point: their brightest stars starting together in a crucial match—and being rendered ineffective. It was also a wake-up call.

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Why It Matters

Real Madrid’s ambitions go beyond La Liga. The Champions League, the Club World Cup, global dominance—these are the stakes. And those dreams rest heavily on whether their two attacking flagbearers can stop working in parallel and start working in tandem.

In Alonso, Madrid may have the ideal figure for the job. A man who thrived alongside Galacticos but never lost sight of collective balance. A leader who understands that footballing greatness is forged in chemistry, not just chaos.

The season opener against Osasuna on August 19 will mark the start of a new campaign—but more importantly, the next chapter in the Mbappe-Vinicius story. There’s time to write a better narrative than last year’s disjointed first draft.

If Xabi can align their movements, recalibrate their instincts, and, crucially, make them believe that two kings can rule one kingdom, Real Madrid won’t just be contenders.

They’ll be unstoppable.