Another Brazilian star comes in at number 11. Vinícius Júnior is probably the most talented player in Brazil’s squad, which is both the reason he belongs this high and the reason his World Cup is so fascinating. At Real Madrid, he is already a superstar. A Champions League winner, a Ballon d’Or-level attacker, and one of the few wingers in the world who can completely tilt a match by himself. Real Madrid’s official stats list him with 53 appearances, 22 goals and 9 assists this season, and Transfermarkt values him at $176.4m.
The interesting part is that Brazil are still waiting for the national-team version to fully match the club version. He has 47 caps and 8 goals for Brazil, which is a good international career, but not yet the kind of production you expect from one of the best attackers in the world. After a rather tumultuous season at Real Madrid, with several coaches finding it difficult to solve the puzzle of getting the most out of both Vinicius and Kylian Mbappe, this World Cup is his chance to push his name back into the conversation of the top players in the world. It is his chance to become the face of Brazil in the way Neymar was for more than a decade.
Tactically, he will be central to what Carlo Ancelotti wants Brazil to be. Brazil are more measured and balanced under Ancelotti, with wide isolation and elite individual attackers still at the heart of the plan. That sounds built for Vinícius. Let Brazil control enough of the game to avoid chaos, then get him the ball on the left and force fullbacks to survive one-on-one.
The group gives him a perfect stage. Brazil open against Morocco, with an especially enticing matchup with elite right back Achraf Hakimi. After that, Brazil face Haiti and Scotland. Morocco are good enough defensively that Vinícius may have to solve a real tactical problem right away. Brazil will rightly be expected to walk over Haiti in one of the most lopsided World Cup matchups in history. Scotland will make the game physical and try to turn it into a set-piece and second-ball battle. In all three matches, Vinícius gives Brazil the most direct path to making the game feel unfair.
There is also a legacy piece here. Brazil have not won the World Cup since 2002, and their recent exits have often ended with the same feeling: lots of talent, not quite enough ruthlessness when the bracket gets serious. Vinícius is the player who can change that. If he is just dangerous in flashes, Brazil are still good. If he is the best attacker in the tournament, Brazil can win the whole thing.