MADRID — With three assists and a goal, Vinícius Júnior quieted the fans who had booed him again at the start of Real Madrid‘s 6-1 rout of Monaco in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Part of the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium crowd jeered the Brazil forward nearly every time he touched the ball early on in the league-phase game in Madrid, but the boos dissipated as the match went on and were virtually gone by the time Vinícius scored his first Champions League goal of the season in the 63rd minute.
After the goal, Vinícius celebrated with his teammates and not the fans, then went straight to new manager Alvaro Arbeloa and hugged him. He acknowledged after the match it had been a challenging period for him in Madrid.
«The last few days have been very difficult for me, for all my teammates, but above all for me, because of the whistles, because of everything that’s said about me,» Vinícius said. «I’m always in the spotlight and I don’t want to be there for things that happen off the pitch, I want to be there for everything I do for this club on the pitch.
«It was a very special moment. I had given some assists in the match. My teammates were telling me I needed to score. It’s important to have the confidence of my teammates. We’re a family, and with their confidence and by giving our best, we’re going to win many things this season.»
The early boos were not nearly as loud as they were Saturday in Madrid’s 2-0 win over Levante in the Spanish league. Both times fans jeered when Vinícius’ name was announced in the starting lineup, but this time the game ended with fans on Vinícius’ side as he was chosen the man of the match.
Vinícius has been having a lackluster season and some fans viewed him as one of the reasons why coach Xabi Alonso was replaced last week.
The Brazil star had spats with Alonso, a former Madrid and Spain great as a player who was replaced as a coach by Arbeloa following a tumultuous eight-month stint. Vinícius was reportedly the main player not backing Alonso in the locker room.
«When the Bernabéu is with him he’s unstoppable, he’s the most dangerous player there is,» Arbeloa said after the match. «If we want to fight for titles we need him. He deserves it. The hug he gave me was to all Madrid fans who’ve supported him and been with him in difficult moments.»
Vinícius also had assists on goals by Kylian Mbappé and Franco Mastantuono as Madrid piled on against the French side. He also sent in the cross that led to an own-goal by Monaco defender Thilo Kehrer early in the second half.
Mbappé scored in the fifth minute to put the hosts ahead. He hugged Vinícius after his second goal later in the first half — and again following the final whistle. The France international and Arbeloa had come out defending Vinícius recently, with Mbappé saying the crowd shouldn’t single out Vinícius as the one to blame for the team’s struggles.
Many fans applauded a seventh-minute attempt by Vinícius, who just missed wide from inside the area. When he misplayed a ball just before halftime, some of the fans started to boo again, but many more applauded in response.
There were no immediate jeers toward club president Florentino Pérez like had happened against Levante.
Mbappé appeared to apologize to Monaco fans after scoring. He was a former Monaco player. Mbappé has 18 Champions League goals for Madrid, the most of any player in the first 20 appearances with the club, ahead of the 14 of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Jude Bellingham, who was also jeered by some fans on Saturday, scored Madrid’s sixth goal in the 80th.
«Today I saw the Bernabéu supporting Vini, Kylian, Jude, all of them,» Arbeloa said. «They made a huge effort. Bellingham’s running wasn’t normal. That effort makes me very happy. That’s what we need, a committed team. It was a great night for everyone.»
Arbeloa added: «Vini needs to feel loved by the fans. He’s very emotional. He needs to feel that affection. It isn’t easy. I said yesterday, the crowd at the Bernabéu are fair, we saw that today.»
Madrid had entered the match against Levante coming off a two-game losing streak that included a loss to Barcelona in the final of the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia — which prompted Alonso’s departure — and an embarrassing elimination against Albacete in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey.
That all seemed like a distant memory by the time the referee blew his whistle for the end of the match, with the win leaving Madrid in second place in the Champions League table with one game to play and in a strong position to finish in the top eight and avoid the playoff round.
«It’s a night that shows that when the Bernabéu is with the team,» Arbeloa said. «Madrid are better when the Bernabéu are on our side we’re a great team, on the great nights.
«A lot of us have experienced it. That’s what we need.»
There was a moment of silence before the match in honor of the victims of the train crash that killed more than 40 people in southern Spain on Sunday.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this story.
