Minutes after Real Madrid fans were singing for Vinicius Jr to win the Ballon d’Or, the Brazil forward insisted he wanted to “stay at the club forever”.
Vinicius Jr scored a sensational hat-trick against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Tuesday to help his side come from 2-0 down to win 5-2 at the Santiago Bernabeu.
He could not have timed his treble better with the Ballon d’Or, widely regarded as football’s most prestigious individual trophy, awarded on Monday, 28 October.
After the match, Real manager Carlo Ancelotti called Vinicius Jr “an extraordinary character” and insisted he “will win the Ballon d’Or” based off his performances last season.
The talk is that the 24-year-old is the favourite to win the prestigious accolade having led Real to a La Liga-Champions League double last season, scoring in the Champions League final and also later being named as the competition’s best player.
Off the pitch Vinicius Jr won the second ever Socrates Award last year, given to the footballer who has performed the best humanitarian work worldwide.
Many on social media feel the race for the Ballon d’Or has already been won after rumours emerged that Nike are to release special Mercurial Vinicius Jr, external golden boots two days after the ceremony.
Either way, Vinicius Jr’s performance against Dortmund in the Champions League league phase can only help his cause.
