In case you didn't know, Vinicius Junior is now one of the world's best footballers.

After a tough start to life at Real Madrid following a high-profile move from Flamengo, the Brazilian winger has blossomed into a seriously good player.

In 2021/22, Vinicius has tormented defenders for fun and also contributed to a high numbers of goals, 21 (12G, 9A) in 25 appearances to be exact.

As a result of his turnaround at Real Madrid, the 21-year-old forward is now ranked as the most valuable footballer on the planet by the CIES Football Observatory.

Their complex algorithm - which also factors in the length of each player's current contract - has Vinicius even ahead of the enigma that is Erling Haaland, which is something of a surprise.

Let's take a look at the top 50 in full...

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The 50 most valuable footballers in the world

50. Manuel Locatelli (Juventus) - €69.9m

49. Declan Rice (West Ham United) - €70.5m

48. Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain) - €71.5m

47. Jules Kounde (Sevilla) - €73.2m

46. Rodri (Manchester City) - €74.2m

45. Leon Goretzka (Bayern Munich) - €74.8m

44. Eljif Elmas (Napoli) - €75.1m

43. Moussa Diaby (Bayer Leverkusen) - €75.6m

42. Timo Werner (Chelsea) - €76.0m

41. Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich) - €76.2m

Kimmich with Bayern

40. Federico Valverde (Real Madrid) - €76.3m

39. Eder Militao (Real Madrid) - €78.6m

38. Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) - €78.7m

37. Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea) - €79.3m

36. Diogo Jota (Liverpool) - €79.6m

35. Eric Garcia (Barcelona) - €80.6m

34. Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain) - €82.0m

33. Joao Cancelo (Manchester City) - €82.9m

32. Marcos Llorente (Atletico Madrid) - €83.9m

31. Federico Chiesa (Juventus) - €86.7m

Chiesa with Juventus

30. Josko Gvardiol (RB Leipzig) - €87.3m

29. Emile Smith Rowe (Arsenal) - €88.1m

28. Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City) - €88.2m

27. Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan) - €91.6m

26. Ferran Torres (Barcelona) - €93.1m

25. Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan) - €93.4m

24. Dayot Upamecano (Bayern Munich) - €94.2m

23. Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid) - €95.2m

22. Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) - €98.0m

21. Sergino Dest (Barcelona) - €100.8m

Dest with Barcelona

20. Kai Havertz (Chelsea) - €101.2m

19. Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich) - €101.7m

18. Leroy Sane (Bayern Munich) - €102.4m

17. Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) - €103.0m

16. Reece James (Chelsea) - €108.0m

15. Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain) - €108.2m

14. Mason Mount (Chelsea) - €108.9m

13. Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool) - €112.8m

12. Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) - €113.9m

11. Jadon Sancho (Manchester United) - €115.0m

Sancho with Man Utd

10. Frenkie de Jong (Barcelona) - €115.2m

9. Pedri (Barcelona) - €118.0m

8. Ruben Dias (Manchester City) - €120.5m

7. Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich) - €122.3m

6. Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund) - €130.1m

5. Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen) - €133.0m

4. Mason Greenwood (Manchester United) - €133.9m

3. Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund) - €142.5m

2. Phil Foden (Manchester City) - €152.6m

1. Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid) - €166.4m

Vinicius with Real Madrid

So, 21 players in total are valued at €100m+, with Vinicius comfortably at the top with an enormous figure of €166.4m next to his name.

Unsurprisingly, Mbappe's valuation of €72.5m is the largest among players whose contracts are expiring in the summer.

When the French superstar signs his next contract - which could be with PSG, Real Madrid or another member of Europe's elite - expect him to fly up CIES' valuation ranking.

The ultimate football quiz of 2021