Carlo Ancelotti praised Vinicius Junior for leading Real Madrid to a 5-2 Champions League win over Borussia Dortmund with his hat trick.
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Vinicius led Real Madrid with his hat trick
Madrid trailed 0-2 at halftime at Santiago Bernabeu after Donyell Malen and Jamie Gittens scored for Dortmund.
After the break, Rudiger, Vinicius, and Vazquez scored for the reigning UCL champions, sealing the comeback.
Vinicius, 24, scored Madrid’s last two goals to complete his hat trick.
“It’s unusual for a player to have a second half like he did,” Ancelotti said in his post-match news conference. “He played with energy and intensity, with extraordinary character.”
Ancelotti criticized his side’s passiveness during the first half, but said they had delivered “our best second half this season.”
“We started the first half without much intensity, we were too timid. We can play with more energy, taking risks,” he said.
Vinicius was confident
The Brazil international’s half trick performance came less than a week before the 2024 men’s Ballon d’Or awarding ceremony in Paris.
Vinicius is deemed as the favorite to win the highest individual award.
“I think [Vinicius] will win it, but not because of what he did tonight,” Ancelotti said. “It will be because of what he did last season. The three goals tonight will help him win the next Ballon d’Or!”
Vinicius said the team’s confidence went up as soon as Rudiger converted their first goal in the second half.
“We know that at home, with our fans, anything can happen,” Vinicius told Movistar. “When we got to the dressing room [at halftime] we were very quiet, we just listened to the boss.. And he said one thing: if we score the first goal, we’re going to come back. And we did it.”
