Vasco shake-up: Diniz revamps attack, Rayan outshines Vegetti | OneFootball

Vasco is experiencing a new offensive phase under the leadership of Fernando Diniz. The team, which until recently relied almost exclusively on goals from Pablo Vegetti, has found new protagonists with the arrival of the coach. The main one is Rayan, a 19-year-old youth product from São Januário, who has taken on the role of top scorer and symbol of Vasco’s transformation in 2025.

One of the board’s goals for this season was to reduce dependence on the Argentine striker, who was responsible for almost half of the team’s goals since 2023. Vasco invested in reinforcements and sought alternatives, but the real change only happened after Diniz’s arrival. With the new coach, the team began to attack more dynamically, with greater collective involvement and participation from different areas of the field.

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Vegetti celebrates a goal alongside Rayan in Vasco vs Cruzeiro — Photo: Alexandre Durão

The numbers confirm the turning point. Before Diniz’s arrival, Vasco had scored 33 goals in 28 games, with 15 of them from Vegetti, which represented 45% of the total. After the change in management, this percentage dropped to 20%, with the Argentine scoring 9 of the 45 goals under the new coaching staff. The collective impact is evident: 15 different players have found the net since the coach took over.

Among them, Rayan stands out the most. The striker has scored 11 goals with Diniz and has become the team’s new top scorer in this period, surpassing Vegetti. The cross-maltese jewel is at the peak of his career and has established himself as a central piece of the offensive project.

In addition to Rayan, Philippe Coutinho and Nuno Moreira have also shown technical and statistical improvement. Both have become more involved in playmaking and finishing. The diversification of offensive actions is one of Diniz’s trademarks and has directly impacted the results.

A survey by ge shows that, before the coach’s arrival, only 10 different players had scored for Vasco in the season — two of them using alternative lineups in the Campeonato Carioca. With Diniz, the number rose to 15, including full-backs and center-backs who now frequently appear in set pieces and offensive runs.

Another statistic that highlights the change is the average number of goals. In the first 28 games of the season, the team scored 33 goals, while in the following 28, already under new management, there were 45, an increase of 36%.

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Coutinho and Nuno Moreira in Vasco vs Vitória, Brasileirão 2025 — Photo: André Durão

The growth is also reflected in the Brazilian Championship. Since Diniz’s debut, Vasco has had the best attack in the competition, with 35 goals, surpassing Palmeiras and Flamengo, who scored 33 in the same period.

With Rayan on the rise, Vegetti in a new role, and a more versatile attack, Vasco seems to have found the balance it was seeking. And if the combination of youth and method is anything to go by, Fernando Diniz may be leading not just a tactical overhaul, but a revolution at São Januário.

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This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.