Manchester United had their eyes on Vinicius Jr when the Real Madrid attacker was playing in Brazil at just 14-years-old, but they failed to move fast enough and he ended up in Spain
Manchester United reportedly uncovered “gem” Vinicius Jr in 2014 but didn’t end up signing him.
The Real Madrid attacker, 21, joined the Los Blancos from Flamengo for £38million in 2018. The Brazilian – who scored a phenomenal goal against Manchester City on Tuesday – has gone from strength to strength this season.
And according to ESPN, the forward could well have ended up at Old Trafford. Carlos Noval, a former academy coach at Flamengo, explained: “A foreign scout from Manchester United said: ‘Noval, look at the player you have, he’s a gem! ‘I’ve never seen a 14-year-old player do what he does.
“That reinforced everything we already had in mind. He was a gem to be polished. Everyone wanted Vinicius.” Noval continued: “Corinthians didn’t get to talk to us because they didn’t have the slightest chance. Barcelona, in particular, monitored this boy since he was 13 years old. Real Madrid and most of the big European clubs too.”
Vinicius Jr netted just six goals in 49 appearances for Real Madrid last campaign but this season he has scored an impressive 18 in 46 games.
