By halftime at El Saridnero on Sunday, it was already game over. Real Madrid were 3–0 up against Racing Santander and well on their way to a sixth consecutive victory.

After a stuttering start to the season, Los Blancos have found their feet. And, crucially, they have found their attack. Three of Madrid’s front four scored the goals at Racing, while the other—Arda Güler—provided an assist.

In those last six wins since the international break, Kylian Mbappé, Jude Bellingham, Yan Diomande and Güler have recorded a whopping 22 goal contributions (14 goals and eight assists) between them.

The quartet is on fire. After months (if not years) of debate about Madrid’s front line, José Mourinho appears to have happened on a lineup of players who complement, rather than stifle, one another.

The problem is that it may not remain this way for much longer, with Vinícius Júnior soon available for selection again.

Vinícius Jr’s Miserable Run

The Brazilian’s four-match suspension for pulling Nathan Saliba’s hair (and then angrily remonstrating with the referee) ends after Madrid’s trip to Valencia next weekend. After that, he will be back in contention for La Liga matches. The situation threatens to create a headache for Mourinho and Madrid.

Vinícius Jr has been a superb player for Real Madrid and one of their most important in recent years. He is now one of the club’s longest-serving players, a locker room leader, a Ballon d’Or runner-up and a scorer in two Champions League finals. Crucially, however, he is also in absolutely wretched form.

The fact that the forward has scored just once all season (the third in August’s 4–1 home win over Real Sociedad) might have been overlooked—Vinícius Jr has always been something of a streaky player—had he not looked worryingly off the pace in all other areas for some time.

Madrid Without Vinícius Jr

L’Equipe shared an average position map from the Madrid derby defeat which showed the Brazilian’s dot entirely covered by that of Mbappé, before he was hooked off before the hour-mark.

In his last two matches against RB Leipzig and Roma, Vinícius Jr hasn’t attempted a single dribble. The win over Roma marked his first in his 310 starts for Real Madrid in which he finished without attempting a single shot.

The boos and whistles are now a bi-weekly occurrence at the Bernabéu.

The reason for this rough patch is not entirely clear. It could be Mourinho’s tactics, getting crowded out by Mbappé, a hangover from his protracted contract saga that damaged his relationship with the fans, or more personal reasons. Or a combination of all of those, and more. Soccer players are, after all, complex.

The man himself has previously admitted to struggling with his confidence post-Brazil’s lethargic World Cup exit.

Mourinho’s Conundrum

So far this season, Mourinho has defended Vinícius Jr publicly, calling him “the tree that has a lot of fruit on it,” as he taught the Madrid press room a Portuguese proverb.

The manager has also insisted “the stats and numbers he registers suggest we will see his best version very soon.” That particular claim was made mid-September and we are yet to see the evidence to back it up.

Soccer moves on fast, and after all the lip service paid to past achievements, it was ahead of the Leipzig match on Oct. 21, that Mourinho admitted that no player is guaranteed to start in his team, saying—with a typical flourish—that “only the badge is untouchable.” While he didn’t name Vinícius Jr specifically, there was no doubt who he was talking about.

It’s the right statement to make from the manager, especially after player-power and locker-room egos got violently out of control (sometimes literally) at Madrid last season. Still, it’s easy to say you’re prepared to bench the club’s second-highest earner and a global icon and entirely another thing to actually do it.

Vinícius Jr remains a favorite of club president Florentino Pérez and a hugely important asset to the club. He has just signed a massive new deal. His tantrum at being subbed in the Clásico a year ago was the beginning of the end for Xabi Alonso. While Mourinho has far more weight both in the locker room and the board room than Alonso ever did and was brought in to manage these types of situations, it remains a delicate moment.

The ideal resolution would be if Vinícius Jr rediscovered his old form and Madrid could simply add another option to what is already perhaps Europe’s most potent attack. That looks like an, at best, optimistic reading of the short-term, however,

Vinícius Jr is unlikely to accept a reduced role or diminished status quietly, but Mourinho can hardly pander to the winger when there is a title race suddenly back on. After the clash with Valencia onNov. 7, there is another international break for Mourinho and Madrid to think over just how they re-integrate Vinícius Jr into a team that is finally clicking without him.