The Brazilian has endured a frustrating time at Santiago Bernabeu, and looks set to leave the club without making any kind of meaningful mark

"He's extremely talented. I see him as a '10' – a Kaka," former Brazil Under-17's coach Guilherme Dalla Dea told when quizzed on Reinier Jesus' development in July 2019. "I see these characteristics in Reiner. He likes getting in the box, scoring goals. He also scores goals from outside the box. I've so much belief in him. He's a kid, a youngster, but he's very level-headed and because of this he's our captain. I firmly believe we'll see him playing at a very high level overseas."

Dalla Dea's prediction turned out to be factually correct, but not nearly to the extent he'd imagined. Six months later, after helping Flamengo win a stunning Serie A and Copa Libertadores double, an 18-year-old Reinier joined Real Madrid in a €35 million (£30m/$39m) deal, committing to a six-year contract at Santiago Bernabeu.

In the process, Reinier joined up with compatriots Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo, with the former having also swapped the home comforts of Flamengo for the bright lights of Madrid. It was expected that the Brazilian trio would all fulfil their vast potential and spearhead Madrid's attack in the long term, helping the club enjoy another era of dominance in domestic and European competition.

Vinicius and Rodrygo have done exactly that, racking up 550 appearances in all competitions for Los Blancos between them, along with three La Liga winners' medals and two Champions League titles. Both men remain vital cogs in Carlo Ancelotti's set-up to this day, with Vinicius even emerging as a regular contender for the Ballon d'Or.

Unfortunately, though, Reinier is lagging way behind, having yet to make his senior bow with Real. There is a very good chance he never will, either, because he's now in the middle of his fourth underwhelming loan spell away from the club. The question is: what exactly went so wrong for the 'next Kaka'? GOAL takes a look below…

Covid ruins first year

It's obvious now that the comparisons with Kaka led to too much pressure being placed on Reinier's young shoulders. It also didn't help that his ex-Flamengo team-mate Filipe Luis went a step further after the Madrid transfer was announced, telling : "It really is a great signing; I congratulate Real Madrid. I remember Kaka because he played with his head up, and he was lethal in the area. Reinier has even more quality than Kaka with his back to goal."

Perhaps the fact that Kaka never reached the same heights at Real as he did with AC Milan served as a bad omen for Reinier, who had also been a target for Manchester City and Atletico Madrid – according to . And as fate would have it, the Covid-19 pandemic effectively ruined his first year in the Spanish capital.

Reinier started well enough after joining Madrid's Castilla squad, recording three goal contributions in his first three appearances under the tutelage of club legend Raul. But the Segunda season was then put on hold in March 2020 due to the pandemic, and by May, when Spanish teams were cleared to resume training, then-manager Zinedine Zidane had drafted Reinier into the senior group.

That breakthrough did not lead to a regular role in the squad, though. Madrid eventually decided Reinier would be better off gaining first-team experience elsewhere, and he was sent to Borussia Dortmund on a two-season loan deal in August.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesMisery at Dortmund

Interestingly, the first thing Reinier did at Dortmund was try to shut down talk of being Kaka's natural heir. “I don’t want to be a Kaka, I want to be Reinier,” he told BVB's official website after his unveiling. “It’s a nice thing to be compared to such a player, but I want to show the football player I am. I want to be successful with the club, win titles if possible and give the fans a lot of joy.”

Reinier's best intentions rarely shone through on the pitch, though. He was restricted to just 70 minutes of action for Dortmund in the first half of the 2020-21 Bundesliga campaign, which led to reports of a premature return to the Bernabeu. They were, however, shut down by Michael Zorc in January, as the Dortmund sporting director said: "We basically don’t want to give him up. If someone is dissatisfied because he has too few opportunities, then you talk to each other, but we will not take the initiative ourselves."

To his credit, Reinier wanted to stay and prove his worth at Signal Iduna Park, and after being given Madrid's blessing, he scored his first goal for Dortmund from the bench in a 3-0 Bundesliga win over Arminia Bielefeld in February. That long-awaited moment would not spark a turnaround in fortunes, though.

Indeed, the teenage playmaker had to wait until the final day of the season for his first start, at which point BVB had already secured Champions League qualification under caretaker boss Edin Terzic. Surprisingly, Dortmund continued to persist with Reinier after appointing Marco Rose as their new permanent manager in the summer of 2021, but his second season at the club ended up being an even bigger disaster.

Getty Images'Something very strange is happening'

Reinier was named in Brazil's U23 squad for the delayed 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo despite his struggles at Dortmund, and played his part in their run to Gold Medal glory, scoring a crucial penalty in their semi-final shootout victory over Mexico. claims that Dortmund also tried to sign Reinier permanently that summer, but Madrid rejected their approach – a decision they would later come to regret.

"I hope to play more this season and I'm working towards it," Reinier said during his time at the Games. "I work at home every day. I want to play, score goals – everything." He did not get his wish, though, as Rose favoured the likes of Julian Brandt and Thorgan Hazard ahead of Reinier right from the start of his reign at Signal Iduna Park.

By the end of October 2022, Reinier had made just six substitute appearances totalling 66 minutes, and his father, Mauro Brasilia, felt the need to speak out. "Something very strange is happening there, it’s a shame, for both of us," Brasilia told GOAL. "He could bring a different style of play to the team, which is very necessary in some matches. He knows how to control possession and control the game like few others. It seems that Dortmund have not understood this, and have not realised that he could be a good option."

Reinier was subsequently linked with a winter move to Benfica, but a deal never materialised. He instead remained rooted to the Dortmund bench in the second half of the 2021-22 campaign, even as BVB fell way behind Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga title race, and finished the season without a single goal or assist to his name.

Getty ImagesBad luck halts Girona revival

When Reinier's loan deal at Dortmund finally expired, he was glad to leave. The Brazil U23 international subsequently completed another loan move to Spanish outfit Girona, and expressed his desire to rebuild after "two lost years" in Germany.

"I just wanted to get out of there. I did my part, I trained, I went home and I was there every day," Reinier added in an appearance on Brazilian podcast in September 2022. "I always arrived on time. I respected all the people who worked at the club. I have a clear conscience."

Reinier quickly worked his way into Girona's starting XI, and scored his first-ever La Liga goal in a 2-1 home win over Real Valladolid. But just when it looked like he might start fulfilling his potential, disaster struck. Reinier missed Girona's first four league games in October with a muscle problem, and his return only lasted two matches.

Girona were forced to make do without Reinier from November to mid-February as he battled to recover from ankle and hamstring injuries. Head coach Michel gave the Brazilian plenty of chances to win back his place after he'd made a full recovery, but he only earned three starts in Girona's final 12 games of the 2022-23 season, scoring once, and unsurprisingly, the club did not make any attempt to sign him outright.

Madrid still had no place for Reinier in their first-team squad, and so once again they started looking for clubs willing to take the Flamengo academy graduate on loan. Unfortunately, after three underwhelming seasons, the list of suitors was a short one, and Reinier's short-term future was not decided until deadline day in the 2023 summer window.