Perez has revealed Vinicius Jr's 'dirty play' - serious problems for the Brazilian

Vinicius Junior is in talks to extend his contract with Real Madrid. The Brazilian winger has scored 20 goals and provided 16 assists in 50 games this season.

He was second in the race for the 2024 Ballon d'Or and is one of football's biggest stars. But for months, there have been reports of alleged offers he is receiving from Saudi Arabia, where he would become arguably the highest-paid player in the world.

Marca published an article titled "Vinicius and the Phantom Offer from Saudi Arabia", which states that "his agents are still looking for an excellent offer from the Saudi Professional League, while negotiations for a contract extension with Real remain open."

Spanish media reports that negotiations between Real and Vinicius began at the beginning of the year at the club's initiative. Progress has been made, but they are still not close to an agreement.

"The alignment of views only came after the club rejected the first offer from Vinicius' agent, Frederic Pena, which he considered completely unacceptable and referred to the existing wage structure as an unchangeable norm," writes Marca.

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"After that initial meeting, months passed before talks resumed, but the player's new financial demands, reduced to 30 million euros net per year, including a signing bonus, were still considered too high by the club," the Spanish media outlet further reports.

Real Madrid believe Vinicius' salary should not exceed €20m per year. Vinicius earns €17m per year on the contract he signed in 2022, a similar amount to Mbappe's (not counting the huge signing bonus) and slightly higher than Jude Bellingham's after last year's increase.

To increase their negotiating power, representatives of Roc Nation Brazil, the agency that represents Vinicius, have been in parallel contact with Saudi football people for months, trying to secure a generous offer.

"It's a strategy that agents and brokers have been using since two years ago, when Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund launched the Premier League Transfer Centre (PACE), a program that offered clubs additional financial resources and brought in stars like Ronaldo, Neymar, Benzema and Mane at wages that European clubs could not match," reports Marca.

Spanish journalists have revealed that Vinicius' representatives have held at least two meetings with the leaders of the Saudi Pro League since January: "The aim is to fight for an offer that would put pressure on Real to improve the conditions. In those talks, the Saudis discussed several options with Vinicius' representatives, including that of becoming an ambassador for the 2034 World Cup, which is due to be held in Saudi Arabia."

However, despite the rumors coming from the player's inner circle, the famous €200 million-a-year offer that was rumored never actually existed. At least until now. Regardless of whether or not there is an offer from Saudi Arabia (and so far there hasn't been one), it is logical to expect that the club and the player will come to terms and eventually reach an agreement.

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However, the current tense situation at Real Madrid does not favor this, nor does Vinicius's weakest season. "Although the figures are not bad (20 goals and 16 assists in 50 games), his performance is far below the level of last year that raised him to the top of world football, won him the "The Best" award and positioned him as Rodrigo's main competitor for the "Ballon d'Or", writes Marca.

"This season, more has been said about his behavior than about his goals or his progress. In addition, his relationship with some key players in the dressing room is not the best, mainly due to numerous controversies and poor commitment when the team does not have the ball," the Spanish media continues.

In parallel, comments from executives who are tired of Vinicius' behavior and who are beginning to wonder whether it is worth continuing to keep such a problematic player, considering the benefit-harm ratio, are becoming increasingly frequent and louder within the club.

Especially now that Kylian Mbappe has arrived and they see him as the leader of the next project. "These are the same people who claim that if that big Saudi offer really arrives one day, Real and Vinicius would make a smart move by accepting it," Marca concludes. /Telegraph/