Vinícius Júnior 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, Vinícius took to social media to react to his dismissal. 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 victory while expressing regret at leaving his team-mates a man down during the decisive stage of the match.
A controversial dismissal
The sending-off came in one of the most contentious moments of the evening. Coming on as a second-half substitute, Vinícius struck the ball into the net and briefly appeared to have doubled Real’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 off down the tunnel. The Brazilian walked off visibly furious at the decision, gesturing in protest as he went.
Real Madrid were left to defend their lead with ten men. Yan Diomande had scored the only goal of the match in the 63rd minute.
Further frustration online
Not long afterwards, Vinícius expressed his anger again. He shared a new post on his Instagram stories, voicing his frustration at 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 appeared alongside a collection of images from different matches, in which the player argues that opponents avoided a booking despite fouling him or aiming blows at him.