Vinícius Júnior has apologised to his Real Madrid team-mates and the club’s supporters after being sent off in Saturday’s 1-0 win over Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabéu.
According to Spanish newspaper Marca, the Brazilian reacted to his dismissal on social media. The forward posted a short message on his Instagram account after the final whistle, having been shown a red card in the 72nd minute.
“The happiness continues. I apologise to my team and its supporters,” the winger wrote, celebrating the victory while expressing regret at leaving his team-mates a man down during the decisive stage of the match.
A controversial dismissal
His sending-off came at a controversial moment. Having come on as a second-half substitute, Vinícius put the ball in the net and briefly appeared to have doubled Real Madrid’s lead. The referee, however, disallowed the goal. The official ruled that he had fouled a Villarreal defender in the build-up, pulling Saliba‘s hair during the challenge that preceded the shot.
At the same moment, the referee produced the red card and sent Vinícius down the tunnel.
The Brazilian walked off clearly furious at the decision, gesturing in protest as he went.
Real hold on
Down to ten men, Real Madrid had to protect their one-goal lead. Yan Diomande had scored the only goal of the match in the 63rd minute.
Further frustration
Not long afterwards, Vinícius vented his frustration again. He shared a new post on his Instagram stories, criticising the refereeing treatment he believes he receives time and again.
“The player who always gets both the yellow and the red card is Vinícius, what a disgrace,” the comment read. It was accompanied by a collection of images from different matches, in which the player argued that opponents had avoided a booking despite fouling him or aiming blows at him.