‘Long Way to Go’—Xabi Alonso Reveals Vinicius Jr Reaction to Champions League Snub

Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso has admitted Vinicius Junior was left disappointed by the decision to drop him for the team’s Champions League opener.

Rodrygo was given the nod on the left wing for Madrid’s game against Marseille, which ended in a tense 2–1 victory, but Alonso insisted the decision was simply part of squad rotation, rather than anything deeper.

However, the situation did not help Vinicius, who finds himself under immense pressure at Madrid. Now in the final two years of his contract, talks over an extension have so far proven uncomfortable as club officials question whether his performances on the pitch merit the sort of financial commitment wanted by the Brazil international.

That tension appears to have impacted Vinicius behind the scenes as Alonso confirmed he was not initially in the right mindset to discuss the decision to bench him, but the pair have since spoken about the way forwards.

“I think he’s doing well. Yesterday, obviously, after the other day, you could see he was still a little more... that it wasn’t the right time to talk to him,” Alonso explained. “But today, however, he was acting better, with a better smile, more positive.

“We talked a little, not much; but at the end of training, I did some individual work with him: some crosses, some finishes. He finished feeling good, and so did I.

Vinicius Junior, Xabi Alonso — Vinicius has spoken with Xabi Alonso. | Diego Souto/Getty Images

“I saw him yesterday... I don’t think it was the time to talk. You have to have that intuition. And today we did talk a little. But today we finished training with good feelings, doing something individual, but we’ve only had five league games. There’s still a long way to go; it’s a marathon until May. So, we have to take our assessments very slowly. We have to give everyone time: the team and the individual players.”

Asked directly whether he believes Vinicius is suffering from a drop in focus, Alonso defended his star winger by insisting everyone in the squad has a responsibility to help him improve.

“For me, there are many important players in this squad, in terms of level, experience, track record, and what they’ll give us,” Alonso continued. “Vinicius is one of them, Kylian [Mbappé], Jude [Bellingham], Fede [Valverde], Aurélien [Tchouaméni], Dean [Huijsen, [Dani] Carva... I’m probably leaving out a few.

“I’m not going to get into those labels we want to apply right now. I value everyone highly, I know the role they have to play, and I need to build the team so everyone feels important. We’re charting the course; there’s still a long way to go; but everyone is in the boat, and we need everyone to row in the same direction.”