Striker Vinicius Júnior was back in Real Madrid’s reserve bench on Tuesday (16), when Xabi Alonso debuted as a merengue coach at Champions League, raising even more speculation about the Brazilian’s future.
who succeeded as a coach in May, chose the Brazilian Rodrygo on the left to the 2-1 win over Olympique Marseille in the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid, Spain.
On the right, Alonso climbed the new contractor, with Vinicius entering the second half. It was the second time this season that the former, the first Brazilian to score in two finals, started as a reserve.
In August, Vini left the bank against to give. Alonso said this “showed that (Vinicius) can have a big impact leaving the bank.”
Alonso’s lineup decisions against Marseille seemed to be results, as Brazilians suffered who were decisive. At 27 minutes, Rodrygo helped Madrid draw when he broke into the Marseille area and suffered a clumsy foul from Geoffrey Kondogbia with Kylian Mbappe converting the penalty.
Rodrygo, however, could no longer influence the match and was replaced by Vinicius on 63 minutes. Vinicius then got another penalty for Madrid at the end of the match, after Facundo Medina touched the ball with her hand as she slid him down, and Mbappé scored again.
Vinicius’s celebrations with teammates were warm, but Alonso minimized speculation about restlessness in the locker room, saying that “if there are private conversations, they should be in Valdebebas (Real Training Field).”
“There will be moments for everyone. No one will play all the matches. No one should feel offended for not playing a match,” he added.
