Vinicius Junior put in another impressive performance in Brazil’s third group stage match. However, it was another player on the Seleção who provided the emotional highlight.
Although he had come close to scoring several times, Vinicius Junior was denied the third goal in the 3-0 victory over Scotland. With his third and fourth goals of the tournament so far, as well as a strong overall performance, the 25-year-old had nevertheless convinced FIFA to name him the official Man of the Match for the third game as well. So, in a way, it was a hat trick after all.
“I’m not concerned with the numbers,” Vinicius Junior clarified afterward in true professional fashion in an interview with SporTV. This likely also includes the fact that he is only the fifth Brazilian player to have scored in all three group stage matches of a World Cup. Previously, only Jairzinho (1970), Romário (1994), Ronaldo, and Rivaldo (both 2002) had achieved this.
All of them are big names who have each lifted the World Cup trophy at least once—in Ronaldo’s case, even twice. That’s the big dream that the Real Madrid pro, of course, is striving for as well. But everything has its time: “Now it’s about moving forward and improving even more for the next goal, because we’re heading into the knockout round”—where Brazil will first face the second-place team from Group F—the Netherlands, Japan, or Sweden.
On the way to a possible final in New Jersey, Vinicius Junior wants to continue “doing his best to help the team.” That worked out in an unusual way against Scotland: “I’m really happy about the goals. Today I even scored a header—I’d promised the coach I would. He said it was almost impossible and that he’d give me a gift. So I’ll just have to wait and see,” said the match-winner with a smile.
Ancelotti sees “good performance” from Neymar
Just as he did against Haiti (3-0), Vinicius Junior was able to celebrate a victory, even embracing Neymar in the process. The fact that the 34-year-old was even wearing a sweaty jersey during the celebrations this time added to the joy in the Brazilian camp.
By coming on as a substitute in the 76th minute, Neymar celebrated his Selecao comeback after a staggering 981 days. His 14th appearance at his fourth World Cup finals was certainly an emotional one for the 34-year-old, who couldn’t hold back tears of joy and relief after the final whistle.
“He had the opportunity to play because I think he deserves to be on the field—he’s worked very hard on his recovery with a lot of dedication and professionalism,” said Carlo Ancelotti about Neymar, who had been sidelined until recently with calf problems. “I believe that, given his qualities, he can help the team at the World Cup, and I think he put in a good performance in the few minutes he played,” said the national team coach.
