Real Madrid duo Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe have offered kind words for each other amid speculation of an ongoing feud between the superstars.
Los Blancos have had a mixed season, recovering from a terrible run of form that saw them lose 4-0 at home to Barcelona and 3-1 to AC Milan, to remain unbeaten on five occasions and finish second in LaLiga in December strengthen.
Their Champions League campaign has been particularly nervous as the 15-time winners sit in 20th place and face the possibility of a play-off match to progress to the next round.
It is not what the Bernabeu faithful expected after lifting both trophies last season and adding Paris Saint-Germain striker Mbappe to their already considerable arsenal in the summer.
But things haven't quite clicked for the Frenchman this season, as he often stepped on Vinicius' toes and struggled to find his place in Carlo Ancelotti's system.
Amid rumors of a feud between Mbappe and his teammate, the two showed their mutual respect in an impromptu New Year's Eve interview ahead of Friday's match against Valencia, Marca reports.
The former PSG striker said: 'What do I admire most about Vini? His humility, without a doubt. Everyone knows the player and sees his quality every three days.
'This year he has won many collective titles and individual prizes, but I emphasize his humility. He is always good with the people in the locker room and I really like that.
'We can score many more goals and we will do so. I had to adapt to a new team and in the locker room they helped me a lot. I thank them all.'
Vinicius continued Los Blancos' love-in with some friendly comments about his new colleague.
“Kylian is a crack as a person and as a player,” he said. 'He's very easy to play with.
'He will score a lot of goals for all the supporters. This is just beginning.”
Both stars featured in FIFA's Men's Team of the Year in December, with Vinicius being awarded Player of the Year honors in compensation for his controversial criticism of the Ballon d'Or.
As it turned out, he beat the winner of October's award, Manchester City's Rodri, by five points, with 48 votes to Rodri's 43.
Vinicius' Madrid teammate Jude Bellingham took third spot with 37, while another Los Blancos player, Dani Carvajal, came fourth with 31.
This placed him just ahead of Barcelona and Spain star Lamine Yamal (30).
Lionel Messi (25), Toni Kroos and Erling Haaland (18 each), Mbappe (14) and Florian Wirtz (8) completed the top 10. Fede Valverde was the last player nominated and he finished 11th on four points.
Receiving his award, an elated Vinicius Jr. said: “It seemed impossible for me to arrive here on this stage… I came from a small place, close to poverty and crime. Now I'm here.'
It was a very different reaction to when he was beaten by Rodri for the Ballon d'Or two months ago.
On that occasion, Vinicius Jr. joined by his Madrid teammates who snubbed the ceremony after they felt he deserved the individual award, despite Rodri receiving 1,170 voting points to Vinicius Jr.'s 1,129.
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