Fresh from winning the Champions League last season, Real Madrid stand unbeaten across all competitions in 2022-23, earning 11 wins from 13 matches.
Safe passage to the knockout stages of Europe's elite competition for Carlo Ancelotti's side comes alongside fine form in LaLiga, where Madrid sit second, only behind arch-rivals Barcelona on goal difference.
Neither have lost domestically this season, though Barcelona's endeavours in the Champions League have been somewhat less impressive, leaving the situation delicately poised ahead of Sunday's El Clasico at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The time of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi shining in the fixture has long since passed, so the stage is set for the headlines to be grabbed by a new star and Madrid will look to Vinicius Junior to provide the edge.
Leading the line
With Karim Benzema's injury issues this season, Vinicius has stepped up to score seven goals and register three assists in all competitions, with a total of 10 goal involvements being the highest of any member of the squad.
Firmly established as one of the first names in Ancelotti's line-up, Vinicius has started all but one of Madrid's games this season, coming off the bench in Tuesday's 1-1 draw against Shakhtar Donetsk, with a total of 1079 minutes ranking him highest in that regard – missing just 91 minutes of Los Blancos' entire season.
Reliability in the final third has also been key, with Vinicius boasting 68.8 per cent shooting accuracy, behind only Dani Ceballos, and a 17.1 per cent conversion rate – the highest of any Madrid player with at least 30 attempts, while also significantly higher than the team average of 9.1 per cent.
Vinicius is also above the average for players across Europe's top five leagues in all competitions for those with at least 30 attempts this season, which stands at 15.4 per cent, and is high above team-mate Benzema, who has a conversion rate of 9.1 per cent.
Threat lacking substance
With the ball, Vinicius consistently puts the opposition under threat. The 22-year-old boasts 45 dribbles completed this season, sitting way ahead of his team-mates in that regard, with compatriot Rodrygo ranking second (16).
Vinicius also lays claim to the highest number of take-on attempts across Europe's top five leagues this season (70) but a success rate of 36 per cent is the third-worst for players with at least 50 attempts so far this term.
Often, Vinicius' take-ons lack a decisive impact, with only one resulting in a goal and an expected assists (xA) of just 0.03 in that regard. Only twice has a take-on seen Vinicius drive into the box, showing that the areas where take-ons are completed are not generally in positions to influence the game.
Improving in that area would likely result in an increased total of goals and assists, which may propel his numbers to be comparable with the highest calibre of players in Europe.
Core involvement
While Vinicius still has areas to improve, the influence of the Brazilian upon the Madrid squad is telling. No member of the squad has been involved in more sequences resulting in goals than Vinicius (7, tied with Aurelien Tchouameni), and he is also involved in more attacking sequences than any other player (352).
That shows Vinicius is involved in most of Madrid's attacking moves this season and displays the influential role he has, with the capability to improve even further if he increases his output in front of goal.
The absence of Benzema does affect that, though, with Vinicius creating 20 chances this season, tied with Toni Kroos for the most among Madrid's squad, and two assists. On five occasions, Vinicius' passes into the box have led to a high expected assists value, though the subsequent chances have not been taken.
While the lack of a central striker to take those opportunities has not affected Ancelotti's side so far this season, it is in the bigger games, like against Barcelona, where it could have a negative impact upon the final result.
Vinicius has stepped up in Benzema's absence but cannot provide the same impact in front of goal from his wide-left position, needing a central player to fill those gaps. With Benzema set to be available against Barcelona, it could be bad news for Xavi's side.
Raith Rovers keep unlikely title bid alive with narrow victory at Inverness
Raith Rovers rode their luck to keep alive their slender cinch Championship title hopes with a smash-and-grab 1-0 win at third-bottom Inverness.
Caley Thistle, looking for a third successive win to further boost their survival push, hit the goal frame four times and saw visiting goalkeeper Kevin Dabrowski produce a host of stunning saves.
But in the end it was Lewis Vaughan’s 49th-minute strike that settled the contest as Raith, who could have seen leaders Dundee United win the league on Saturday if they had lost at Caledonian Stadium, close the gap on the pacesetters to three points.
Duncan Ferguson’s Inverness created several good chances to take the lead in a one-sided first half, with Dabrowski keeping out Cammy Harper’s 25-yard free-kick before Alex Samuel was denied by a goalline block.
The hosts came even closer in the 21st minute when Harper fired against the bar and then saw Dabrowski fling up a leg and somehow manage to block his follow-up.
Rovers had done little to prove they were the team at the top end of the able in the first half but four minutes after the restart they took the lead, top scorer Vaughan getting on the end of a flick-on to coolly guide the ball past Mark Ridgers.
That proved to be the game’s decisive moment as the Raith goal continued to lead a charmed life, Samuel seeing a curling shot come back off the far post and the brilliant Dabrowski turned over a shot from the same player.
Inverness then hit the crossbar twice in quick succession, Danny Devine and James Carragher seeing headers come back off the goal frame, before Dabrowski tipped over a stoppage-time effort as Raith somehow held on for the three points.
Former Wales winger Leighton James dies, aged 71
Former Wales winger Leighton James has died at the age of 71.
James’ former clubs Burnley and Swansea – where he spent 13 years of a colourful 19-year senior career – were among those to pay tribute to a gifted player who won 54 caps for his country.
“We are sorry to hear the news of Leighton’s passing,” Burnley chairman Alan Pace said of James, who had three spells at Turf Moor and scored 81 goals in 399 appearances for the Clarets.
“He left an indelible mark on this football club and stories of his playing skills still echo around Turf Moor.
“Our thoughts are with his family at this sad time.”
Swansea-born James made his Burnley debut in 1970 – his pace and trickery quickly making him a Clarets’ favourite – before joining Derby for a then club-record fee of £310,000 and having a one-season stop at QPR.
James returned to Burnley in 1978 before joining his hometown club two years later and helping their rise in to the old First Division under John Toshack.
“Swansea City is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Leighton James at the age of 71,” read a club statement.
“The gifted winger, widely-regarded as one of the Swans’ finest players, was a key figure in the side that secured a first-ever promotion to the top-flight in 1981, scoring a stunning goal in the victory over Preston North End at Deepdale to complete the club’s rise.
“He went on to star the following campaign as John Toshack’s side took the fight to the elite of English football, eventually finishing sixth in the First Division.
“The thoughts of everyone at Swansea City are with Leighton’s friends and family at this sad time.”
After three years at Swansea, James went on to play for Sunderland, Bury and Newport before taking his career full circle with a third spell at Burnley.
James’ 10 international goals included the match-winning penalty against England in the 1976-77 British Home Championship – Wales’ only ever victory against their neighbours at Wembley.
The Football Association of Wales posted on X: “It is with great sadness that we share the news that @Cymru international Leighton James has sadly passed away.
“Amongst his most famous moments with the dragon on his shirt was scoring a penalty in a famous win over England at Wembley in 1977.
“He was a star of the only Cymru team to top a qualifying group before going on to reach the quarter-finals of Euro 1976.”
James held various coaching positions in South Wales after his playing career and worked in the media, where he developed a reputation as a forthright columnist and pundit.
Both Burnley and Swansea have confirmed they will wear black armbands in their respective matches against Sheffield United and Huddersfield on Saturday as a tribute to James.
Philippe Clement urges Rangers to embrace intense environment of run-in
Philippe Clement has told his off-form Rangers players they must embrace an intense environment where results dictate whether they go to “heaven or hell”.
The Gers were widely lauded after a consistent run of form that saw them wipe out Celtic’s eight-point advantage at the top of the cinch Premiership to briefly take over at the summit in February.
However, they go into this Sunday’s Scottish Gas Scottish Cup semi-final against on-song Hearts having been ferociously criticised after slip-ups away to Ross County and Dundee over the past week left them with just two wins from their last eight games in all competitions and their title hopes hanging by a thread.
“If you win 10 games in a row, you have more belief than when you lose two times but this is Rangers, this is a club where you always have to fight,” said Clement.
“Every point you lose, it’s like you’re going to hell. That’s this world, and that’s good. That’s also the challenge and it’s interesting to see which players can live in that way.
“But it’s an exciting place to be because on the other side you can go also to heaven when you win games and when you win trophies.
“In other teams, where it’s not so important to win points or when it’s not something dramatic when you lose points, you cannot go to heaven also because those are not the clubs that win trophies. This is something you need to embrace.”
Clement insists he is comfortable with the intense scrutiny and criticism he has faced amid Rangers’ recent “bumps in the road”.
“I know it’s part of the job,” he said. “I’ve been now more than 30 years in this world and I’ve been buried a lot of times as a player and as a manager, so I know what I’m doing in a club. I know what I’m doing in this club. I know we are on the right road together.”
Clement described the demands of being in charge of Rangers as similar to managing former club Brugge in his homeland.
“Winning, becoming champion, is the only thing that counts,” he said. “But I’ve been like that all my life. There is nobody who can be more critical than me because I want to win everything.
“Everybody who knows me from when I was a child, whether it was basketball, tennis or table tennis or whatever sport, I want to win. I made a lot of fights with my wife about that, that I wanted that mentality with my children because I did it with them also.
“If I played a game with them and they were three years old, I wanted to win. That is the mentality that is necessary in a club like this, but you need to embrace that.
“It’s also because of that that you can be successful and you can win trophies and have these exciting moments that will stay with you for the rest of your life. That is what Rangers is about and that’s why I love to be here.”
Clement galvanised Rangers earlier in the season after replacing Michael Beale in October.
Asked what he would say to supporters who fear the resurgence is fizzling out, the Belgian said: “The same thing I said in October. I think this team since October did improve in results, in attitude and resilience, and in six months they proved it several times.
“So it’s there, they can do it. They’ve shown it several times with quality. That’s what they need to do again. So, yes, my belief is there 200 per cent.”
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