The Brazilian team played two powerful friendly matches: against England and Spain. Great rivals, victory at Wembley, last minute stop at the Santiago Bernabéu and the incredible Endrik. But less is said about all this than about Vinicius Junior and his press conference prior to the game against Spain. Vini once again touched on the topic of racism and even said that he was thinking of leaving Real Madrid due to the constant insults.
What exactly did Vinicius say?
“There is less and less desire to play.” Why did Vinicius cry at the press conference?
Let’s be clear: racism is terrible. It has no place in football. It has no place in life. There can be no justification for racism. Those who insult Vinicius because of his skin color are cavemen who should not be in the stadium. Vini has every right to talk about this. Drawing attention to the issue is important, and the Brazilian is doing just that.
But. The tone of Vinicius’ statements and his reaction to insults during matches raises questions. Vini is a great player. He is only 23 years old, but he has already won everything at club level and is rightly included in the pantheon of the best footballers in the world. However, in the case of the haters, he does not behave like a high-level athlete. He acts like a child.
Vinícius junior
Photo: Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images
When Vini reacts so violently to the hatred of the stands, he makes it clear: this is my weak point, hit it there. And the stands are hitting. Vini could be better than this. Of course, this is very difficult. Withstanding such pressure, even at the age of 23, is a very difficult task. But Vini is not just a street boy. Despite his youth, he has a lot of experience, he should have gotten used to the pressure by now. He can’t be missing when you play for Real Madrid and the Brazilian team. The pressure is included in the ticket price.
Vinicius usually turns the anger that accumulates in him into brilliant feints, goals and assists. This is what happened, for example, in the last match between Real Madrid and Valencia at Mestalla. It was in this stadium where one of the most notorious racist scandals involving Vini occurred, when he tried to leave the field right during the match. And so, in 2024, the Brazilian returned to Valencia, scored two goals and helped Real not lose in a match that seemed lost.
By the way, about Valencia:
Abramovich is an opportunity for Valencia. The cult club dies without a normal owner
Vinicius was just as great on his visit to Osasuna. There they also whistled and booed him. And he scored two and celebrated like a king. But it also happened differently. It happened that Vini sulked, got scared, received letters and cried because not everyone liked him. Once again: there is no excuse for racism! But by reacting in such a violent and aggressive way, Vinicius becomes like those who insult him. And he attracts even more hate.
Vinícius junior
Photo: Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images
In a press conference prior to the match against Spain, Vinicius said: “The Championship (we are talking about La Liga. – Championship Note), which once belonged to Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano and Messi, today belongs to racists.” I would like to ask: when the aforementioned stars played, was there any racism in the Lee League stands? Perhaps we knew less about this because the media and social networks were not as developed. However, it is difficult to imagine that racism in the Spanish stands only arose with the appearance of Vinicius.
Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano and Messi also played under crazy pressure. In the case of Cristiano and Messi, the issue of racism is probably not so relevant. But they were pressed on other points. Ronald was presented with so many things, so many sophisticated and not so unpleasant things were shouted at him… he wouldn’t wish it on anyone. But he remained above that. Like Messi, Ronaldinho and Ronaldo.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi
Photo: Alex Caparrós/Getty Images
Yes, everyone has breakdowns. And Cristiano himself periodically responded to hatred (not always with talent) and provoked in response. But in general, Ronaldo, Messi, Ronaldinho and the young Ronaldo responded to hate with play. And that’s why they became big. They were taller than those barking in their direction.
Vinicius is a great player. But he will not become great unless he follows the same path. There will always be hate. For racial reasons, for any other reason, it will happen. This is bad, but there is no way to escape it. Vinicius tries to influence this, but he will hardly be able to abolish racism and other manifestations of hatred. However, he can change his attitude about it.
Vini is doing well!
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Talking about the problem of racism is important and necessary. But on the field there is only football. Let them shout: I will play and show them that they are wrong. If Vinicius follows this path, it will be a gigantic advance. This will be a manifestation of a great personality. It will also be an important step towards true greatness. Towards those who, according to Vinicius, once belonged to La Liga.
