Ronaldinho: Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior Will Soon Be 'Among the Best'

Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior will soon be "among the best" players in the world, according to his fellow Brazilian Ronaldinho.

The 19-year-old is in his second season at the Santiago Bernabeu since moving to Real from Flamengo, also a former club of Ronaldinho's, for £38.7 million.

His fine performances last term, when he made 18 La Liga appearances, were one of few bright spots for Real in a poor campaign.

So far in 2019-20, Vinicius has a goal and an assist in five La Liga outings.

And former Barcelona star Ronaldinho is convinced he is on the way to becoming a world superstar, per EFE (h/t Marca):  "[Vinicius] is already at one of the best clubs in the world. I think he will soon be there, among the best."

After a mixed start to the season from La Liga's biggest clubs, the top of the table has a familiar look to it eight games into the campaign:

With the international break now out of the way, Real travel to Mallorca on Saturday looking for a win to at least maintain their two-point lead.

A week later, the first Clasico of the season between Barca and Real is scheduled to take place at the Camp Nou, although the venue could yet be changed:

Ronaldinho outlined his hopes for the fixture: "I hope it's a great game, that it has many goals and that the big names show up."

There is a significant chance, though, that if the venue is not changed, the match may have to be postponed altogether:

Barcelona have recently had the edge against their biggest rivals, winning four of their last six against Real, and drawing the other two.