Vinicius Junior and Willi Orban were definitely the two entertainers of the evening, Wednesday at the Santiago-Bernabéu stadium.
The two scorers of the Champions League round of 16 second leg between Real Madrid and Leipzig (1-1) were involved in another game. The Brazilian, before opening the score in favor of the Madrid club, could have (or even had to?) be sent off for a foul on the Hungarian defender.
The score was still goalless when the Real winger charged behind Willi Orban in midfield.
This first obstruction already deserved a warning, as Vinicius had intervened so late.
But the Brazilian didn't stop there.
When his opponent got up, he violently pushed him by the neck and the Leipzig player fell to the ground.
Davide Massa, the match referee, only showed a yellow card.
❌ 🟥 Vinicius escaped the red card for this action.
#UCL pic.twitter.com/0xF7MSyL7M
— RMC Sport (@RMCsport) March 6, 2024
The controversy has been growing since Tuesday evening.
Leipzig reacted during the match with an ironic tweet: “Vinicius Junior, with an unsporting gesture, grabs Willi Orban by the neck, with both hands.
The referee only punished this with a yellow card... Interesting :) » The German club players also protested after the match.
Vinicius Junior packs Willi #Orban unsportlich mit beiden Händen an den Hals.
Der Unparteiische bestraft das lediglich mit Gelb ... 🟨
Interesting :)
⏱️ 54. Min.
⚪⚪ 0:0 🔴⚪#RMARBL #UCL
— RB Leipzig (@RBLeipzig) March 6, 2024
Starting with Willi Orban, victim of the foul: “Unfortunately, referees do not have the courage to send off such players.
You can give them a red card.
He pushes me with both hands on my throat.
This is simply disrespectful!
» His partner Benjamin Henrichs even suspects the Spanish club of being at an advantage: “I will say it openly and honestly: if it were the opposite and one of our players attacked a Real Madrid player, he would be sent off 100% % !
»
The Catalan press castigated the attitude of Vinicius, player of rival club FC Barcelona.
“New scandal at the Bernabéu!
Assault on Vinicius and expulsion avoided,” headlines the daily Sport.
Mundo Deportivo adds a layer: “Vinicius comes close to the red card for a stroller that will get people talking.
» Even the Madrid newspaper As spoke out against the Real winger, since according to him, “his cables were touched”.
Also read “Absolute serenity which reflects on the players”: how Luis Enrique succeeds in calming PSG
Two former Spanish referees also commented on the action.
For Mateu Lahoz, “Vinicius played with fire because, if he hits him in the neck, we are talking about something serious.”
Iturralde González shares this opinion: “Today, Madrid should have been down to ten!
And the goal was scored by a player who should have been sent off.
»