Champions League: Real Madrid revels in the exceptionality of Vinicius Jr. | Football News

Calcutta: When Jude Bellignham dispossessed Emre Can and found Vinicius Jr., the clock ticked down to 86 minutes. Most of the 5.6 miles (9.1 km) that Vinicius Jr. was said to have covered had been covered, but with Borussia Dortmund struggling to get back, he saw an opportunity. So he ran, like Forrest Gump.

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The hat-trick was completed in stoppage time when Vinicius Jr. made a meandering run to trouble Waldemar Anton and Pascal Gross, the two defensive substitutions Dortmund had made to prevent just such a thing. After advancing from 0-2 to 2-2 almost as quickly as France in the 2022 World Cup final, Real Madrid now won this duel between the 2023/24 Champions League finalists 5-2. Only one team has achieved this in the history of the Champions League. Real Madrid.

The difference between Doha and Madrid was that Vinicius Jr rather than Kylian Mbappe was in charge, despite two assists from the French star. Emilio Butragueno, the Real legend and former Spain striker, said Vinicius Jr's third goal reminded him of Pele. Even Real coach Carlo Ancelotti, the epitome of insouciance when Lucas Vasquez gave Real the lead, was visibly moved.

Hat trick completed, Vinicius Jr. danced. Just like he announced at the World Cup. His celebrations are intended to provoke people – there have been over 20 incidents of racist abuse against him in La Liga alone in the last three years. But it is also an act of defiance. A statement against racial abuse. “He is a player who gets booed because he can make a difference,” Ancelotti said.

When Vinicius Jr. did a hippy-hippy shake, the roof-closed Bernabeu exploded with cheers. The Ballon d'Or is coming up on Monday and this stadium had no doubt who the recipient should be.

“You rarely see a player who plays a second half like Vinicius. And not because of the three goals, but because of his character; he is exceptional,” said Ancelotti.

His exceptionalism was evident when Vinicius Jr. pocketed Trent Alexander-Arnold in the 2022 final. And when he achieved Real's insurance goal of winning back the Champions League this year. Not all stallions become thoroughbreds, and when Karim Benzema was overheard telling Ferland Mendy not to match him, it seemed as if Vinicius Jr had lost his bearings. That was in the 2020/21 season, but it doesn't feel that new, that's how good things have been at Real since then.

He is Real's top scorer with 15 goals in 14 games in all competitions this season. A first indication of how committed he would be came when a game-changing pass from Eder Militao reached him. The ball with which Bellingham almost scored his first goal of the season came from Vinicius Jr. When Julian Brandt parried it with a superbly timed slip, Real were trailing in the first half thanks to goals from Donyell Malen and Jamie Bynoe-Gitten. When Vinicius Jr. came back and Brandt parried, the score was 2-2 and Real were on the rise.

“If we score the first goal, we go back,” he said. PSG, Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool will not forget what Real did to them. Well, Dortmund never will.

Especially after they started. Malen scored after Serhou Guirassy found him with a velvet pass. Guirassy stayed behind when Real expected him to and helped Bynoe-Gittens make it 2-0. TV cameras showed Militao pounding his fist on the pitch, Rüdiger trying to bury his head in it and Luka Modric looking worried in his 431st Champions League game.

Dortmund had exposed Real's defensive weaknesses and Ancelotti said his team were timid in the first half. After Rodrygo and Bellingham hit the horizontal, Dortmund responded by testing Thibaut Courtois through Brandt. Dortmund could still have won, but they were playing against a team that had scored in 11 of their last 18 European games. Hope came from Rüdiger's header, it grew when Vinicius Jr. equalized, and even before Vasquez scored, the script seemed familiar.