Vinicius Junior’s return to Mestalla, where he was racially abused last year, was full of tension and controversy, with the Brazilian understandably one of the main protagonists.
In the end, Vinicius Jr rescued his side from defeat with two goals on the night he reached 250 appearances for Real Madrid — but the milestone was marred by refereeing decisions, as evidenced by the headline chosen on the club’s official website, taken from his interview with Real Madrid TV.
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“We couldn’t get the win because they didn’t let us,” Vinicius Jr lamented, after the goal that never was.
So ended an eventful night for everyone, one that left La Liga investigating after a video surfaced on social media of a child allegedly calling Vinicius Jr a monkey during the game.
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La Liga investigating after child allegedly calls Vinicius Jr a monkey
In Valencia, there was great interest in the visit of Real Madrid, reflected by the fact that tickets for the match had been sold out in mid-February. The rivalry between the clubs was a factor, yes, but so was the specific Vinicius Jr-inspired rivalry and the desire to prove that what happened in 2023 were the actions of a minority.
The build-up on Saturday was dominated by the fallout from last season’s game. At the last minute, to throw the home fans off the scent and following a decision by the security coordinator, the Real Madrid bus took a different route to Mestalla, travelling via Carrer Joan Regla instead of the usual Avenida Suecia.
Following a decision by the security coordinator, the Real Madrid bus has arrived at Mestalla via Carrer Joan Reglà instead of Avenida Suecia.
The Valencia bus has arrived at the same time by Avenida Suecia.@TheAthleticFC pic.twitter.com/0asXcasOLQ
— Mario Cortegana (@MarioCortegana) March 2, 2024
The diversion, with helicopters buzzing overhead, was a success, but, in the area around Mestalla, there were ‘Pinochius’ posters, alluding to the offensive nickname for Vinicius Jr coined by Superdeporte, a local newspaper.
Things started to get serious in the warm-up. Before every Vinicius Jr shot, the crowd whistled, the volume rising with each effort. In response, Vinicius Jr increased his shooting accuracy.
When the line-ups were announced, Vinicius Jr’s name got the loudest whistles alongside Carlo Ancelotti. Despite his subsequent apology, the home fans had not forgotten how Ancelotti had said after the last game at Mestalla that the racist insults to Vinicius Jr had come from the whole stadium.
Vinicius and Ancelotti, the most whistled at Mestalla.@TheAthleticFC pic.twitter.com/Bk9DEK6j38
— Mario Cortegana (@MarioCortegana) March 2, 2024
There was a sombre moment before the start as tributes were paid to the victims of the recent fire in Campanar, a neighbourhood in Valencia, and appreciation shown to the emergency services who helped minimise the damage of the tragedy.
That reflective atmosphere vanished as soon as the game began. Within the opening minute, in his first possession, Vinicius Jr was whistled after winning a foul. After being fouled again, in the eighth minute, Vinicius Jr complained to referee Jesus Gil Manzano, prompting further anger from the fans.
At that moment, there was a chant that would become commonplace throughout the match, heard on three occasions in the first half: “What a fool you are, Vinicius Jr, what a fool you are…!”
Only one person came close to the animosity shown to Vinicius Jr: Valencia’s owner Peter Lim. In the 20th minute, the entire Mestalla chanted, “Peter, go now!”
Meanwhile, on the pitch, Valencia were beginning to impose themselves. From two sloppy pieces of play in three minutes by Real Madrid — the first by Federico Valverde and Vinicius Jr, the second by Dani Carvajal — Valencia took advantage.
The home side were 2-0 up against Real Madrid for just the fifth time this century — on the previous four occasions, they had won. This season, Valencia had lost just two of their 12 home games in La Liga, conceding only six goals.
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Real Madrid needed something extraordinary and, as they searched for it, Mestalla was having fun. As early as the 38th minute, in fact, “oles” were heard.
And then, suddenly, Vinicius Jr. Who else? In the fifth minute of first-half stoppage time, he made it 2-1, before picking up the ball and carrying it towards the centre circle. On the way, he stopped and looked towards the Curva Nord stand, from where he was racially insulted a year ago, and celebrated by raising his fist, recreating the iconic gesture from Tommie Smith and John Carlos at the 1968 Mexico Olympics.
Although the Netflix cameras filming a documentary about his life and career had been prevented from entering the stadium for the first time this season, the image of Vinicius Jr with his fist raised is sure to be included in the final result.
— Rafael Leão (@RafaeLeao7) March 2, 2024
Real Madrid improved in the second half, with chances for Vinicius Jr and Jude Bellingham to equalise.
The game was heating up, and Vinicius Jr was shown a yellow card for an ugly tackle on Hugo Guillamon. The crowd’s reaction, to no one’s surprise, was a fourth intonation of “What a fool you are, Vinicius Jr, what a fool you are!”
Then he scored the equaliser, an eighth goal in 10 La Liga games against Valencia — the most he has scored against any team.
With Bellingham glued to him throughout, first, he repeated his idol Cristiano Ronaldo’s “I’m here” celebration and then put his hands to his ears, as if to say, “Insult me now!”
This provoked a brawl in which team-mates such as Brahim Diaz and Lucas Vazquez asked him to calm down. Luka Modric also pushed an opposing player who was bothering Vinicius Jr.
“He was the most decisive player for us,” Ancelotti said in a press conference that had to cover myriad controversies from a chaotic game.
That was the general feeling, and that’s why Vinicius Jr left Mestalla as the man of the match, a perfect response to the Valencia fans from last season’s fixture — and this one, too.
(Top photo: David S Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)