Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti criticized his winger Vinicius Jr.’s suspension ahead of a Spanish Super Cup semifinal tie against RCD Mallorca.
The Brazilian was sent off against Valencia last time out in La Liga, for pushing the opposing team’s goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski in the face as his side trailed 1-0 in a hostile Mestalla.
Ancelotti defended his charge following the eventual 2-1 comeback win, and stated his belief that the red card should be cancelled while both men involved in the incident received yellows instead.
On Tuesday evening in Spain, Vinicius was handed a two-match suspension which Ancelotti voiced his disapproval of the following afternoon when facing the media – despite the number 7 still being able to feature in the Super Cup.
“Both me and him hear what happens on the pitch,” Ancelotti said, in a nod to racist crowd abuse the Ballon d’Or runner up allegedly received once more in the same ground.
“I keep saying that it is difficult to be Vinicius. The sanction is not correct,” Ancelotti added, ahead of also stating that those at the club are “delighted with Vini in every aspect”.
Asked if he was “tired of the focus” on the 24-year-old, Ancelotti responded that “everyone has their say”.
“When you talk about Vinicius’ provocation [of the rival fans and players], you deflect the shot of the insults he receives.”
With the UEFA Super Cup and Intercontinental Cup titles already under the first team’s belt this term, Ancelotti thinks that Madrid “has put a good dynamic on track”.
“I think it’s an important competition,” he said about the Super Cup. “It’s the first competition of the year. It has brought us a lot of motivation. We hope that this Super Cup will bring us motivation and commitment.”
While Los Blancos stuttered at the start of the campaign, it now leads La Liga and is “much better” in Ancelotti’s view.
“It’s true. Each game has its [own] problem and difficulty. I’m calm in the sense that the squad approaches these types of games very well. We are not going to have problems with attitude or commitment. The dynamic is being good,” he reiterated.
Should Madrid get past Mallorca, we could be in for a repeat of the 2023 and 2024 Spanish Super Cup finals that pit it against eternal rival FC Barcelona in a Saudi edition of El Clasico.
That’s providing the Catalans overcome Athletic Club on Wednesday, though, on the other side of the draw.
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