Madrid – Xabi Alonso praised Vinícius Júnior for his performance, celebrating his return to the team in a 2-1 win over Mallorca on Saturday.
Madrid trailed early header at Santiago Bernabéu's Vedat Muriqi and then scored two goals from Arda Güler and Vinícius in one minute.
This is Vinícius' second goal in two matches – he took the bench at Real Oviedo last weekend – and secured Madrid's international breakthrough in three wins in Laliga.
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“[Vinícius] Good performance,” Alonso said in a post-match press conference: “It’s better for him than Osanana [on Aug. 19] It's an important goal to put us in front…I'm happy with Vini's game, his goal score is important, it's important. ”
Madrid's three goals were vs. Mallorca by VAR – two goals for Kylian Mbappé were excluded from offside, while Güler played an involuntary handball for Güler.
Vinícius Júnior scored a decisive goal from Real Madrid in the victory over Mallorca. Dennis Agyeman/Europa Press via Getty Images
“The fourth official said handball must be immediately' [to be disallowed] After that, it depends on the referee’s explanation,” Alonso said. “It’s important to achieve the third goal. This is his explanation, this is his role. ”
Alonso said he's happy with the trajectory of his team so far, with their three wins coming soon after preseason restrictions.
“I want to keep going and put the players here,” Alonso said. “But we know in these three games that it’s important to go through the micro preseason, to compete, to keep improving things and defining the path we want.
“Now we have a break and then the next game, including the Champions League. But it's good to start. There's some good stuff, and some things to correct.”
Madrid will travel to Real Sociedad Operation on September 13.