Valencia vs Real Madrid, defying Vinicius Junior’s red card

In a match overshadowed by racist chanting and a red card for Vinicius Junior, Valencia emerged triumphant over Real Madrid on Sunday. Diego Lopez’s goal in the first half proved crucial for Valencia, as it helped them move further away from the relegation zone.

With only three games remaining, Valencia currently occupies the 13th spot in La Liga with 40 points, ensuring a five-point cushion from the relegation spots. On the other hand, Madrid sits in third place with 71 points, trailing 14 points behind champions Barcelona, who secured the title with four games to spare last week.

Having been eliminated from the Champions League following a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City in the second leg of their semifinal on Wednesday, Madrid had nothing at stake in this match.

In the 33rd minute, Valencia found the back of the net through Diego Lopez’s close-range strike, putting them in the lead.

The game took a turn for the worse for Real Madrid when Vinicius Junior was shown a red card after a scuffle with Valencia players, leaving them with 10 men for the remaining minutes.

The distressing incident of racist chants directed at the Brazilian winger led to a brief interruption in the second half. Real manager Carlo Ancelotti expressed his discontent, stating, “I don’t want to talk about football today, there is no meaning in talking about football today.

What we saw today is unacceptable. An entire stadium chanted racist slurs, so I told the referee that he should have stopped the match.”

In light of the circumstances, Ancelotti empathized with Vinicius’s reaction, understanding the challenges he faced. The manager disclosed that he had given Vinicius the option to either continue playing or leave the game, and the player chose to stay on the field.

Ancelotti strongly emphasized the urgent need for LaLiga to address this serious issue. He stated, “LaLiga faces a significant problem.
In my view, Vinicius is the most important player in the world. LaLiga must confront this problem, as instances of racism demand that matches be halted.

The entire stadium is engaging in the disgraceful act of directing racist chants at a player, necessitating a stoppage. My stance would remain the same even if we were winning 3-0. There is no alternative. Vinicius is profoundly saddened and angered by this. Such incidents should never occur in our world today.”