Players, coaching staff and fans showed their support for Vinicius Junior as Real Madrid beat Rayo Vallecano 2-1 in LaLiga on Wednesday.
Karim Benzema scored the opening goal in the first half and substitute Raul de Tomas levelled late on for Rayo before Rodrygo Goes grabbed an even later winner, but all the attention was on Vinicius after the racist abuse he suffered at Valencia on Sunday.
Real Madrid’s players took to the field wearing Vinicius’ No. 20 shirt, a banner was unveiled prematch saying “We are all Vinicius. Enough is enough” and fans applauded the Brazil international — who missed the game through injury — in the 20th minute.
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Rapid reaction
1. The Bernabeu shows its support for Vinicius
All eyes at the Bernabeu were on Vinicius Junior, and he wasn’t even on the pitch. After the racist abuse he suffered at Valencia on Sunday, Real Madrid — the club and the fans — decided to use this game as an opportunity for a very public show of support for the player.
Although Vinicius’ suspension for the red card he received against Valencia was overturned by the Spanish football federation’s competition committee, a knee problem still kept him out of action. His role here was limited to appearing alongside his teammates before kickoff, to the applause of the crowd, before taking a seat in the directors’ box alongside president Florentino Perez.
At times, what was happening out on the pitch itself felt secondary. When the stadium’s scoreboards showed that the game had reached the 20th minute, fans in the Bernabeu’s east stand stood and turned away from the action to cheer Vinicius.
The story is far from over — Vinicius remains hurt and angered by the persistent racist abuse he has suffered this season, Valencia are appealing the five-game stand closure handed to them by the federation for Sunday’s abuse, and the reaction to the saga from some sectors of the Spanish media has been depressing, to say the least — but the hope is that, one small step at a time, the scale of the problem is finally being recognised and proportionate action taken.
