Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr pays the ultimate compliment to Chelsea defender

Vinicius Junior names Chelsea star Reece James as one of his toughest opponents

Speaking to SportBible (h/t Football.London), Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior named Chelsea defender Reece James as one of the most difficult opponents he has faced.

Vinicius, who is a left winger by trade at Madrid, generally comes up directly against opposition right-backs or right wing-backs. Last season, he played against three English teams – Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool, with their fullbacks on that side being Kyle Walker, Reece James and Trent Alexander-Arnold respectively.

Not much can be looked at in the final result as the Spanish beat all those teams along the way to lift the Champions League for the 14th time.

But, Vinicius talked about who his most difficult opponents were (h/t Football.London):

“I’ve played against a lot of them and the most difficult opponents were Chelsea’s [Reece] James and [Kyle] Walker, of Manchester City.”

James had a great season last time around and his battle against Vinicius, especially in the second leg of the quarter-final at the Bernabeu was fascinating. The Englishman had the stranglehold of the winger, but could not do it for the whole 120 minutes of the game.

There is no shock in seeing the 22-year-old’s name being taken by top wingers in Europe as the toughest opponents. For that reason, his injury now is not just a setback to Chelsea, but to England in the forthcoming World Cup.

The good thing about the academy product is that he can do both parts of the game very well. So, he can defend very well in one-v-one situations and can put tremendous balls in the opposition box with crosses or passes.

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It would be a proud feeling for James to see one of his direct rivals with regard to where they play on the pitch, being respectful and complimentary of how good he is as a player. Recognition from a colleague or rival might mean a bit more than any ex-player or journalist writing or saying about him.