By an overwhelming margin: Real Madrid fans call for Vinicius to be dropped in favour of Diomande
The Brazilian star is experiencing a decline in his form
Yan Diomande is knocking on Vinícius Júnior's door, and hard. The Ivorian needed just 36 minutes to deliver one of the standout positives in the Madrid derby, despite Real Madrid's 2-1 defeat to Atlético at the Metropolitano last Sunday in La Liga.
Diomande came on with Real Madrid down to ten men, Atlético in front and the contest looking all but settled. Far from hiding, he seized the left flank, shouldered responsibility and ended the game as one of Mourinho's most active players in the second half, according to Spanish newspaper "Marca".
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His fine performance and Vinícius' worrying decline aren't the only things pushing Diomande towards the starting line-up. The fans are in his corner too, and they want the Ivorian to replace the Brazilian in particular.
Asked "Do you think Diomande should be a starter, and at whose expense?", 86% of those taking part in the "Marca" poll, which topped 50,000 votes, said he should start in place of Vinícius.
Another 7% backed him starting at the expense of other players, namely Mbappé, Bellingham or Güler, while 7% felt he should not start at all. That pushed the share of votes in favour of Diomande starting to 93%.
The derby comparison
In the Madrid derby, Vinícius completed 8 of 11 passes at 73% accuracy, 78% in the opposition half and 50% in his own.
Diomande was sharper. He completed 9 of 10 passes at 90%, with 89% in the opposition half and 100% in his own.
One figure stood out for a player introduced while Real Madrid were a man short. Diomande touched the ball 31 times, against just 22 for Vinícius.
The Ivorian carried more threat in one-on-one duels too, completing 4 successful dribbles from 6 attempts while Vinícius beat his man only once. Diomande also won 5 fouls, compared to just one for the Brazilian.
Vinícius came out on top in only one category: distance carried, 93 metres against Diomande's 72. That gap owes something to the time each player spent on the pitch.
