While he may have lost out on the Ballon d’Or to Rodri earlier this year (or, as Real Madrid would put it, been the victim of “a historic robbery,”) Vinícius Júnior can at least take a crumb of comfort in the fact that he has now passed a significant milestone for his club.
By scoring in Wednesday’s 2-1 loss to Arsenal in the Champions League, the fleet-footed winger has overtaken legendary striker Ronaldo Nazário to become the highest-scoring player from Brazil in Real Madrid history, moving to the top of a star-studded list of compatriots.
At the age of 24, Vinícius has now scored 105 goals in 310 games for Real Madrid since arriving at the Bernabéu in the summer of 2018, when the LaLiga giants parted with €45m, the second-largest transfer fee ever paid to a Brazilian club (behind Barcelona’s €65m deal for Neymar in 2013), in order to sign the prodigious teenager from Flamengo.
Vinícius is in good company on the all-time list of Madrid’s Brazilian goal scorers, joining Selecao icons such as Ronaldo, Kaká and Roberto Carlos.
His goal against Arsenal may not have been enough to complete another classic Real Madrid comeback, but it has claimed for him another small slice of club history.
10. Julio Baptista (13 goals in 78 games for Real Madrid)
An imposing, physical forward, Baptista didn’t really fit the bill at Real Madrid after arriving from Sevilla for €20m and was sent out on loan to Arsenal after muddling through his debut 2005-06 season at the Bernabéu, during which he pitched in with a meagre nine goals in 45 appearances (mostly while being played out of position) as Los Blancos failed to win a trophy. His second stint was equally flat, though he did score a precious winning goal in a historic Clasico win over Barcelona at Camp Nou which helped propel Real Madrid to the 2007-08 title.
9. Kaká (29 goals in 120 games)
After winning the Ballon d’Or for inspiring AC Milan to Champions League glory in 2006-07, Kaká was initially chased by the then-nouveau-riche Manchester City. Instead, he joined Real Madrid in 2009 for €67m, which was briefly a world-record transfer fee, only for that to be eclipsed by Cristiano Ronaldo‘s €80m arrival later that same summer. Unfortunately, a succession of injuries thwarted his time as a Galactico, but the playmaker still made a mark by winning the Copa del Rey and a LaLiga title before returning to Milan on a free transfer in September 2013.
8. Sávio (30 goals in 160 games)
A diminutive left-sided forward who arrived from Flamengo and often served as back-up to the Galacticos of the era, Sávio nevertheless won seven major trophies in five seasons at the Bernabéu between 1997 and 2002; an impressive honour roll that includes no fewer than three Champions League titles.
7. Casemiro (31 goals in 336 games)
Despite being a defensive midfielder by trade, Casemiro is comfortably in the top 10 thanks to the consistent goal return he maintained during a decade-long run in the Real Madrid first team. The Brazil international really hit his stride between 2016 and 2022, scoring 29 goals in all competitions (including a 30-yard screamer in the 2017 Champions League final) while hoovering up a mountain of silverware with Los Blancos.
6. Robinho (35 goals in 137 games)
After breaking through at Santos, Robinho signed for Real Madrid for €24m at the start of the 2005-06 season under Fabio Capello. After an intermittent start to life in Spain, the nimble winger soon became a first-team staple, winning two LaLiga titles in four years before departing for Manchester City in a chaotic €42.5m deadline-day transfer in the summer of 2008 — the very same day the Premier League side announced their buyout by Sheikh Mansour and the Abu Dhabi Investment Group.
5. Marcelo (38 goals in 546 games) 2006-22
Marcelo spent 16 years at Real Madrid between 2006-2022 and you better believe he has the medals to show for it. The left-back, who was signed for a paltry €6.5m from Fluminense when he was 18 years old, won 25 major honours at the Bernabéu, including six league titles and five Champions Leagues while also contributing a few goals to the cause. Marcelo also scored in the Champions League final, helping put the 2014 battle against Atlético Madrid to bed in extra time after Sergio Ramos‘ 94th-minute headed equaliser had rescued Madrid from a catastrophic defeat in Lisbon in the most dramatic circumstances.
4. Rodrygo (68 goals in 256 games)
One of only two current Real players in the goal-scoring top 10, Rodrygo signed for the club from Santos for €45m in the summer of 2019 and has established himself in their attacking trident while stationed on the opposite flank to Vinícius. The speedy winger has already won two league and Champions League doubles with Los Blancos, and 13 major honours overall.
3. Roberto Carlos (69 goals in 527 games)
After a year in Italy with Internazionale, Roberto Carlos moved to Real Madrid in the summer of 1996. He went straight in as first-choice left-back and ended up staying for 11 seasons, during which he amassed 13 trophies. The formidable full-back was regularly seen in far more advanced attacking positions than his accompanying winger. He also presided over free kicks from long range, of which he scored 24 for Los Blancos at a conversion rate of around 4.5% (one in 22.)
2. Ronaldo Nazário (104 goals in 177 games)
One of the greatest all-action strikers of the modern era, Ronaldo signed for €46m from Inter Milan in 2002. But his five-year spell at the Bernabéu was actually a fairly stop-start, injury-hampered period. However, his goal tally still hit treble figures for the club at a prolific rate of 0.58 per game, passing the 30-goal mark in his first two seasons and hitting 24 in his third. Gradually, though, during his final two years in Spain he succumbed to the injury and fitness problems that had affected him earlier in his career, and he never fully recovered before retiring in 2011.
1. Vinícius Júnior (105 goals in 310 games]
After taking a couple of seasons to find his feet as a teenager in a new country, Vinícius began to really establish himself at Real Madrid in 2021-22. Since then, he has scored 20 goals or more every season. Just before his 24th birthday, he became the youngest player ever to score in two Champions League finals when he added his strike against Borussia Dortmund in 2024 to the only goal of the 2022 showpiece against Liverpool. Even after the arrival of Kylian Mbappé at the Bernabéu this season, Vinícius continues to operate as one of the world’s most creative, skilful and direct attacking players.
