Suffering from repeated cases of racism, Vinicius Junior becomes a giant in a challenging moment

Resilience

With all these cases, it would be normal if Vinicius was impacted and had a drop in performance. The result was the opposite, proof of his mental strength and emotional intelligence.

Scoring a goal in the Champions League final is proof enough that his career is a success, but Vinicius Junior is using the current season to show that he can be the protagonist of one of the biggest clubs in the world and also of the Brazilian national team. This while he has to deal with a problem that should have been banished from society: racism.

Brazil is once again a favorite in long-term betting and whoever checks the Betano Promotional Code can get good odds on the hexa in 2026, trusting the talent of Brazilian players and the constant capacity for renewal.

Vinicius arrived at the 2022 World Cup as one of Brazil’s stars, but did not have the space he currently has at Real, including being questionably replaced by Tite early in the second half against Croatia. In the new selection cycle until the next Cup, Vinicius certainly won’t have to watch from the bench while the game is decided.

Performances like against Liverpool are proof that his place has to be guaranteed. With 2-0 against at Anfield, Vinicius scored a beautiful goal to reduce the difference, tying the game taking advantage of a failure by compatriot Alisson and tormenting the right side of the defense of the English.

This season his numbers are already great, with 18 goals and 9 assists, and there are still more than three months of games to play in competitions such as the Spanish League, Copa del Rey and the Champions League.

The 22-year-old had to improve his performance further as Karim Benzema missed weeks of games with injuries. Along with Rodrygo, the Brazilians remained a constant in a period of injuries to Real Madrid that made Barcelona distance themselves in the Spanish league.

This protagonism also had a strong reaction from opponents, whether on the field, often unfairly, and off it in a criminal way, by opposing fans and even members of the press, generating cases of racism that were not clearly curbed.

Three cases were particularly embarrassing. In February, Vinicius was called a monkey by a Mallorca fan, something caught on camera. A week earlier, supporters of rival Atletico de Madrid hung a doll with Vinicius Junior’s shirt from a bridge.

Atletico was also involved in a previous case, when the president of the Spanish association of gaming entrepreneurs said that Vinicius had to “stop monkeying around” for celebrating goals by dancing. Koke, player of Atlético de Madrid, hinted that there would be confusion if the Brazilian player danced after scoring against his archrival.

selection is his

Neymar turned 31 in February 2023 and if we use other cases, such as Messi in Argentina, his technical and moral leadership would be enough for at least one more World Cup at a high level.

However, after three World Cups, it is important for Brazil to start finding new leaders. Neymar, with a long history of injuries and attrition with fans and the press, said that the Qatar Cup would be his last.

Neymar has been in the position of great hope and protagonist since the beginning of his career, which also contributes to mental exhaustion. However, since the end of the competition in Qatar, his opinion about the last cup being in 2022 seems to have changed.

Even if he is on the field, Vinicius and Neymar can complement each other perfectly, with the Real Madrid player using his speed and explosiveness at the wing to open up spaces and create volume.

The coach who takes over Brazil will certainly have options with the player revealed by Flamengo and other players, such as Rodrygo himself, who is more versatile, Antony and even new additions like Vitor Roque and Endrick, if they are already used in this cycle.

Who knows how to make it all work, by the way, is Carlo Ancelotti, the national team’s dream and Vinicius’ coach at Real Madrid.

Read more:

Botafogo and Flamengo classic is marked by confusion, fights and failures in Mané Garrincha

‘More Than Winners’: project helps transform young people’s lives through sport

Former Flu, Wendel is a victim of racism during a match for the Russian Cup