MADRID — Xabi Alonso indicated he plans to discuss Vinícius Júnior’s frustrated response to being substituted during Real Madrid’s 2-1 Clásico victory against Barcelona on Sunday.
Vinícius was taken off in the 72nd minute, making way for Rodrygo, with the match still tightly contested at the Santiago Bernabéu.
His reaction was visibly displeased; he pointed at himself in disbelief, shouted, and laughed before ignoring coach Alonso as he walked down the tunnel.
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Following the match, Vinícius returned to the bench and was involved in a confrontation with Barça’s Lamine Yamal as tensions flared at the final whistle, particularly given Yamal’s pre-game remarks aimed at Madrid.
Vinícius was among five players who received yellow cards during the encounter, while Madrid’s backup goalkeeper Andriy Lunin was shown a red card.
“I prefer to focus on the positives from the match and Vinícius’ contributions,” Alonso said in the post-game press conference. “We will certainly discuss [Vinícius’ reaction], but I don’t want to divert attention from the overall significance of the victory.
“We’ll address it within the context of the excellent game that it was. Vini played a crucial role. This is a vital, well-deserved win … It’s important to foster the feeling of being a competitive team in major matches, and as for the rest, we will talk about it.”
Alonso has left Vinícius out of the starting lineup on three occasions this season, despite his availability, including last weekend’s win against Getafe.
Earlier this week, Alonso referred to the Brazilian forward as “fundamental” and “decisive,” adding, “I enjoy seeing him smile.”
Jude Bellingham netted the winning goal for Madrid on Sunday, marking the third time he has scored the decisive goal in El Clásico.
“He’s had a strong week with good performances against Juve [on Wednesday] and Getafe [last weekend],” Alonso remarked when discussing Bellingham. “Given his return from surgery, we anticipated he’d need some time and minutes to find his rhythm. Fortunately, it has gone even better than we expected.”
With their victory over Barcelona, Madrid now sits five points clear at the top of the league standings after ten games.