Emile Heskey believes Vinicius Junior produced a coming-of-age performance in Real Madrid’s Champions League thumping of Liverpool while justifying Arsenal’s interest in the Brazil international.
It’s not every day a European powerhouse invests nearly £40 million in a 16-year-old with just one senior appearance under his belt.
Then again, it was obvious from day one that Vinicius Jr was something rather special, the sort of rare talent who bursts onto the scene once in a blue moon.
And, four years after that most eye-catching of transfers, the quicksilver winger repaid a sizeable portion of his monstrous price-tag with a Man of the Match performance against the 2019 European champions in Valdebebas.
Vinicius ripped Jurgen Klopp’s mix-and-match backline limb from limb in the Champions League quarter-final first-leg, scoring twice on the night while making Trent Alexander-Arnold look more like Phillip Degen than England’s answer to Cafu.
And when you consider that Vinicius has had his fair share of criticism this season, a match-winning display against a side the size of Liverpool could hardly have come at a better time.
“(When you’re a young player) you want to perform against the best, you want to showcase your ability and show that you are the man. And he did that. He did that in great fashion,” Heskey, the former Liverpool ace, tells HITC.
“He made players look silly. He got at players and made sure they knew what he could do. It was a coming-of-age performance. Everyone knew he was capable of doing that but you still have to showcase it.
“Everyone knew Mbappe was a wonderful player from an early age at Monaco but he still had to show it against the best. Vinicius stepped up and did that.”
Defensa Central reported in January that Arsenal made their interest known in one of world football’s most exciting young attackers.
And, though Real Madrid are unlikely to let Vinicius follow in the footsteps of Dani Ceballos and Martin Odegaard after Tuesday’s dazzling display, Heskey understands why the Gunners may be keen.
“He does (fit in at Arsenal). I think fits that mould of attack-minded players; someone who is very direct, loves the ball to feet and loves driving at defenders and causing havoc, getting them on the back foot,” Heskey adds.
“Then again, he fits the bill of quite a few Premier League teams.”
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