Vinicius could have expected a better gift from his coach Zinedine Zidane on the occasion of his hundredth game for Real Madrid according to a report in Marca. Zidane opted to start Isco ahead of the Brazilian for their pivotal La Liga clash with Real Sociedad, lining him alongside Marco Asensio and Mariano.
The trident didn’t work as expected, however, with Zidane changing it with a triple-substitution in the 61st minute. Vinicius came on alongside compatriot Rodrygo as well as Hugo Duro, with the man of the moment scoring the equaliser in the 89th minute, a crucial goal that prevented all three points from being dropped.
The decision to bench Vinicius for such a momentous game could be perceived as a slight, especially given he’d started three previous games in a row. The excuse of resting him for the upcoming derby with Atletico Madrid also couldn’t fly given that Madrid have a whole week to prepare for it.
“We’re sad to not have achieved the victory we needed,” Vinicius said post-match. “We won the five previous games and the last one before the derby we didn’t get the win. It’s a pride to have played 100 games with this shirt. I spoke with my family today and I went out to give it my all for this shirt we love so much.”
What momentous goal!!!