Vinícius struck in the 50th and 76th minutes to wipe out first-half goals by Hugo Duro and Roman Yaremchuk as the match ended 2-2.
Vinícius Júnior scored twice to lift Real Madrid to 2-2 against Valencia in the Spanish league on Saturday in his first return to Mestalla Stadium where he was racially abused last season
was red-carded after the final whistle when he protested the referee’s decision to waive off what would have been the winning goal. The referee said time expired just before Bellingham’s last-gasp header.
Vinícius struck in the 50th and 76th minutes to wipe out first-half goals by Hugo Duro and Roman Yaremchuk.
Last May’s racial attack was among the worst the Black player has had to repeatedly endure in Spain. It led to an upswell of support for the Brazil forward and forced soccer authorities to take action, even though the abuse toward him has continued.
While there were no immediate reports of more racial insults on Saturday, a large group of spectators did chant “Vinícius is stupid” and booed him loudly throughout.
After his first goal, Vinícius held up his fist toward the Valencia fans behind the goal. After his equalizer, he cupped his ears as if asking for more from the fans who jeered him.
While Valencia banned three fans for life from its stadium after they were identified as having racially abused Vinícius last season, the club has likewise criticized the player and Madrid for what it considers the unfair categorization of its fanbase as predominantly racist
In a short interview with Madrid’s club television, Vinícius did not mention the fans and said only that it was “a very difficult game.” But on his Instagram account, he posted an image of himself raising his fist after his first goal with the short message “The fight continues.”
“Vinícius played a very good game,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. “He was decisive for us, even though he was more effective in the area than outside it. (Defender Dimitri) Foulquier played a great game defending him, so he had to find his spaces inside the area and he scored two very important goals for us.
NEW DELHI: Vinicius Jr scored two goals to help Real Madrid stage a comeback and secure a 2-2 draw against Valencia in an intense La Liga clash on Saturday.
The Brazilian winger returned to the Mestalla stadium, where he was subjected to racial abuse last year. Throughout the match, Vinicius defiantly stared at the crowd, who jeered and whistled at him.
An unprecedented refereeing decision by Gil Manzano prevented Real Madrid from beating Valencia at Mestalla. With the score at 2-2 and in the game’s last play, Brahim crossed into the box and Bellingham headed home to make it 3-2. But the referee disallowed the goal as he had blown for full-time when the Malagueño‘s pass was still in the air. The La Liga leaders deserved all three points but had to settle for a point after returning from 2-0 down. Two goals from Vini Jr. tied the match, which was finally settled by Gil Manzano’s decision.
The match started with Madrid dominating possession, but Valencia took the lead with their first dangerous chance which Hugo Duro converted in the 27th minute. Things got even more complicated two minutes later with Yaremchuk’s goal, who beat Lunin one-on-one. The leaders had to react to turn around the 2-0 deficit and could have reduced the deficit when Valverde‘s powerful shot from the edge of the area was met by a great save from Mamardashvili in the 41st minute. In stoppage time, Carvajal crossed, the ball hit Javi Guerra’s chest and pinged around the box until Vini Jr. popped up to tap it into the net. 2-1 at half-time but the storyline was to change after the break.
Real Madrid moved the ball more quickly and forced the home side to defend a few yards further back. They could have equalized in the 54th minute. Mendy delivered the ball to Bellingham, who cut inside and beat Mosquera with a fine cut-back, but he could not beat Mamardashvili with his subsequent shot. Valencia’s response came later with a Diego Lopez shot from just inside the six-yard box. Lunin prevented a 3-1 scoreline with a great save.
Vini Jr. brace and controversy
Ancelotti‘s side continued to attack in search of the equalizer they had deserved and Brahim had a chance in the 70th minute with a shot with the outside of his left foot from the edge of the area that missed the target by inches. The 2-2 came five minutes later, when Brahim‘s inch-perfect cross was headed home by Vini Jr. It was all square, and in stoppage time, Gil Manzano gave a penalty for Fran García‘s foul on Hugo Duro, but after reviewing it on the monitor and following a warning from the VAR referee, he decided to correct his initial erroneous decision.