Vinícius Júnior has apologised to his Real Madrid team-mates and the club’s supporters after his sending-off in Saturday’s clash with Villarreal, which Los Blancos won 1-0 at the Santiago Bernabéu.
The Brazilian 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 win while expressing regret for leaving his side a man down in the decisive stage of the match.
A controversial dismissal
The sending-off came at one of the most contentious moments of the evening. Having come on as a second-half substitute, Vinícius put the ball in the net and briefly appeared to have doubled Real’s lead. The referee disallowed the goal, ruling that he had fouled a Villarreal defender in the build-up by pulling Saliba’s hair during the challenge that preceded the shot.
In the same instant, the referee showed Vinícius a red card and sent him down the tunnel. The forward walked off clearly furious at the decision, gesturing in protest as he went.
With ten men, Real Madrid had to protect their one-goal lead. Yan Diomande had struck the only goal of the match in the 63rd minute.
Further frustration on social media
Not long afterwards, Vinícius expressed his frustration again. He shared a new post to his Instagram stories, criticising the refereeing treatment he believes he faces repeatedly. “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 argues that opponents escaped a booking despite fouling him or aiming blows at him.