Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior has sent out a warning shot to the world after finishing second in the Ballon d’Or vote, claiming he will be back.
The Brazilian was the hot favourite going into the week, with Los Blancos taking it as a given that he would win, and Nike even setting out a plan to decorate their shops in Madrid with gold to pay homage to him. Upon finding out that he had not won, Vinicius and Real Madrid decided not to attend the gala in Paris on Monday night, believing they had been disrespected. It meant cancelling their after party too.
Vinicius sent a message on Twitter/X after the award had been given out, saying “I’ll do it 10x if I need to. They are not ready.”
Certainly Carlo Ancelotti will be hoping that this can spark a reaction in his star winger, and amongst his squad after a brutal defeat in El Clasico. Ancelotti himself won the manager of the year award, but was not present to collect, sending out his own message on Twitter/X thanking Vinicius.