MADRID — Gianluca Prestianni was absent at the Bernabéu on Wednesday, as was José Mourinho, but Vinícius Junior shone brightly on the field.
With Prestianni suspended amid UEFA’s investigation into allegations of racial abuse against Vinícius during last week’s first leg, and Mourinho serving a touchline ban during his return to his former club, Vinícius was the star of the night. He netted an 80th-minute winner, securing Real Madrid’s spot in the UEFA Champions League round of 16, making it 2-1 for the evening and 3-1 on aggregate.
While Madrid’s performance was lackluster, falling short of their earlier display in Lisbon, doubts linger about the team’s capability to advance deep into this season’s knockout rounds. but, Vinícius’ quality and current form are beyond question. The forward followed up his remarkable goal in last week’s 1-0 win at the Estadio da Luz—where he reported being racially abused by Prestianni—with another crucial, if less dramatic, goal in Madrid.
After being played in by Federico Valverde, Vinícius burst past the Benfica defense with ease and calmly finished past goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin. He celebrated by heading to the corner flag, mimicking the goal celebration Mourinho had critiqued in Lisbon just a week prior, sporting a huge smile.
Vinícius has now scored in his last five appearances for Real Madrid, marking his best form of the season and tying his career-best scoring streak. Under Álvaro Arbeloa, he’s rediscovered his touch, netting as many goals in ten games with the new coach as he did in 33 matches during Xabi Alonso’s troubled tenure, which ended in January partly due to disagreements with Vinícius.
This is the best news Madrid could hope for: the player pivotal in their last two Champions League victories, in 2022 and 2024, is back in form. but, it may be the only bright spot at the moment.
Madrid displayed defensive sloppiness and a disorganized midfield against a mediocre rival. Based on this performance, they don’t seem like contenders to win the competition for a record 15th time. Benfica, currently third in the Portuguese league, entered Wednesday’s match having lost six European fixtures this season, against a variety of teams: Qarabag, Chelsea, Newcastle United, Bayer Leverkusen, Juventus, and Madrid. Yet, they managed to unsettle Madrid considerably over these two legs.
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On Wednesday, Benfica created nine chances and had 12 shots, with an expected goals (xG) of 1.98, surpassing Madrid’s 1.11. Madrid’s goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made four saves, including an exceptional one to deny Benfica’s Richard Ríos in the first half.
Without Kylian Mbappé, sidelined due to a lingering knee issue—Arbeloa ominously noted before the game that his absence “will not be a question of days”—and Jude Bellingham, who is not expected to return until early April, Madrid is looking to Vinícius to deliver star performances. Over the two legs, he undoubtedly did just that.
Before the match at the Bernabéu, fans behind the south goal displayed a “No to racism” banner to support Vinícius. Benfica’s traveling fans responded by whistling loudly every time Vinícius touched the ball.
It was a challenging night for Benfica’s right back Amar Dedic. From the outset, Vinícius appeared focused and menacing. His first opportunity came just six minutes in, following a clever one-two with Arda Güler that caught the Benfica defense off guard.
After thirty minutes, Vinícius’ cross led to a scoring chance for Güler that was ruled out for offside, which would have made it 2-1. Just before halftime, another driving run from Vinícius left Dedic behind, setting up a threatening ball into the six-yard box.
In the 80th minute, Vinícius secured his goal, allowing Madrid to finally feel assured in their 3-1 aggregate lead. A season that began with Vinícius fluctuating in the starting XI, amidst questions regarding his future and a lengthy three-month goal drought, might yet culminate in him being a decisive factor once again.
“[Vinícius] played a great game,” Arbeloa remarked to Movistar afterward. “He threatened, he scored, he was dangerous. … We need him, especially without Kylian, and even more so, we need him to be our leader.”
On Friday, Madrid will learn whether they will face Manchester City or Sporting CP in the round of 16. City are familiar foes, having met five times in the past six seasons.
“Whoever we draw, it will be challenging,” Arbeloa noted afterward. Yet, there’s no denying that City would present a significant test.
