A transfer that never happens still leaves a story in the dressing room. When contract talks stall at a giant club, teammates start assuming the player is already gone.
The Premier League end of that rumour is always the same. A global name, a title-winning side, and a league office that would have put him on every poster.
The player who stays then has to live with the other version of the summer: the one where he left.
READ MORE: Huge Julian Alvarez to Arsenal transfer update ahead of January
Cadena SER reports that Real Madrid players were stunned when Vinicius Junior did not join Arsenal last summer. Many in the squad thought a move to the champions was a foregone conclusion while his talks with the Bernabeu dragged.
The Spanish radio station says the Premier League had plans to promote him as a leading global star, alongside Erling Haaland at Manchester City and Bruno Fernandes at Manchester United.
Vinicius stayed and signed a new contract. Cadena SER adds that the uncertainty did not damage his standing with teammates and that he remains one of the most trusted members of the squad.
His place in the team is a different matter. Form has drawn criticism from supporters and talk of a spell on the bench. Summer signing Yan Diomande, signed for around £120million, is ready to take the starting role. Jose Mourinho is expected to review Vinicius’s position during the international break.
CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE NOW.ARSENAL WHATSAPP GROUP CHAT TO KEEP UP TO DATE WITH ALL THE LATEST NEWS!
The Standard frames that as the cost of staying. He passed on becoming the headline act in the Premier League and now faces questions about whether he starts in Madrid.
None of this is an Arsenal bid in January. It is a look back at a summer that closed when the new contract was signed. Mikel Arteta’s attack was rebuilt in other ways, with Christos Tzolis arriving and three forwards leaving.
A Cadena SER dressing-room claim is not the same as an official offer. What it does confirm, if the report is right, is how close the Madrid squad thought the exit was.
Vinicius Junior is still a Real Madrid player. Diomande is the internal threat. Arsenal are the club his teammates thought would be next. The move that shocked them was the one that did not happen.
Mikel Arteta - Arsenal
Mikel Arteta - Arsenal
Julian Alvarez
Julian Alvarez