Real Madrid beat Monaco 6-1 in the Champions League as forward Vinicius defied the boos of the home fans.
Vinicius Junior provided three assists and a goal, calming the fans who booed him again at the start of Real Madrid’s 6-1 victory over Monaco in the Champions League.
A section of the crowd at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium jeered almost every time the Brazilian forward touched the ball in the opening stages of Tuesday’s league match in Madrid. But as the game wore on, the boos faded and were almost gone by the time Vinicius scored his first Champions League goal of the season in the 63rd minute.
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The early boos were not as loud as on Saturday, when Madrid beat Levante 2-0 in the Spanish league. In both cases, fans jeered when Vinicius’ name was announced in the starting lineup, but this time Vinicius was named man of the match, and the match ended with the fans siding with Vinicius.
Vinicius has had a lackluster season and some fans saw him as one of the reasons manager Xabi Alonso replaced him last week.
Vinicius took over as coach after a tumultuous eight-month stint, which saw him fall out with former Madrid and Spain international Alonso. Vinicius was reportedly the main player who did not support Alonso in the locker room.
He scored on Tuesday with a well-placed shot after evading several defenders and firing into the top corner. He did not celebrate with fans, instead hugging his teammates near midfield. He then ran to the sideline, saluted and hugged Madrid’s new manager Alvaro Arbeloa.
Vinicius assisted Kylian Mbappé in the 26th minute and Franco Mastantuono in the 51st minute. The Brazilian also provided an assist in the 55th minute for a cross from Monaco defender Thilo Keler that led to an own goal.
A banner held up by fans at the Bernabéu read: “Vini, we’re behind you.”
Mbappé scored in the fifth minute to give the hosts the lead. He hugged Vinicius after scoring his second goal late in the first half, and again after the final whistle.
Mbappe and Arbeloa have recently come out in defense of Vinicius, with Mbappe saying the crowd should not blame Vinicius for the team’s struggles.
Many fans praised Vinicius’ shot in the seventh minute, which went just wide of the area. When he misplayed the ball in the 40th inning, some fans started booing again, but many more applauded in response.
There was no immediate heckling of club president Florentino Perez as there was against Levante.
Mbappé appeared to apologize to the Monaco fans after the goal. He was a former Monaco player. Mbappe has scored 18 goals in the Champions League for Madrid, the most by any player in his first 20 appearances for the club, surpassing Cristiano Ronaldo’s 14 goals.
Jude Bellingham, who was also jeered by some fans on Saturday, scored Madrid’s sixth goal in the 80th minute.
Vinicius came close to scoring again in stoppage time.
Madrid came into the game against Levante on the back of two consecutive defeats, including a loss to Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final in Saudi Arabia, which prompted the sending off of Alonso, and a humiliating defeat against Albacete in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey.
A moment of silence was held before the match in memory of the victims of Sunday’s train crash in southern Spain, which killed more than 40 people.
