Wednesday's Champions League clash between Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain should have immediately seen the top two players in the 2025 Ballon d'Or vote squaring off against one another. However, while Lamine Yamal has returned to full fitness just in time for the game at Montjuic, Ousmane Dembele will remain sidelined for at least another couple of weeks.
Unfortunately, the injury-enforced absences of Raphinha, Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia have robbed the fixture of further star quality - but Vitinha has been included in the PSG squad for the game in Catalonia after recovering from the knock that forced him off in Saturday's Ligue 1 win over Auxerre.
Consequently, the Portuguese is set to go up against Pedri, his one true rival for the title of the best midfielder in the world right now - and a player with whom he has quite a bit in common...