Vinicius Junior defends Real Madrid teammate Rodrygo after 'punch' | OneFootball

Vinicius Jr came to the defence of Rodrygo after he was ‘punched’ off the ball in Real Madrid’s clash vs Cadiz on Thursday evening.

Real were looking to return to winning ways after suffering a shock defeat against Rayo Vallecano last weekend.

And they did just that as they emerged 2-1 victors in the La Liga clash at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Goals from Eder Militao and Toni Kroos gave Los Blancos a two-goal lead after 70 minutes.

Lucas Perez pulled one back late on but it proved to be only a consolation as Real held on to all three points.

Rodrygo clashed with Fali

There was a coming together off the ball in the first-half between Rodrygo and Fali.

Real were on the attack when Rodrygo went down after an altercation with the Cadiz defender. The Brazilian was in some pain and stayed down as Real’s attack continued.

Fali was not punished and VAR also decided to take no action. Watch the moment below…

Vinicius Jr saw the moment and, when Real’s attack fizzled out, rushed to the defence of his teammate.

Vinicius went berserk as he gave Fali a piece of his mind. Both players were booked after the clash.

What did Rodrygo say about his clash with Fali?

Rodrygo was still livid after the game and claimed that Fali’s actions were deliberate.

“I think the thing with Fali is not an accident, he did it on purpose. It’s a disgrace because he told me afterwards that he didn’t do anything. I don’t know why the VAR is there. It’s an assault that has no place in football,” he said, per Real Madrid’s official website.

Carlo Ancelotti said that he had been told that Fali ‘punched’ Rodrygo.

“Yes, they told me that [Fali] punched [Rodrygo]. I saw a video and it seemed like an attack to me,” he told reporters after the game, per yahoo!sport.

What did Fali say about his clash with Rodrygo?

Fali, meanwhile, had a different view on what happened with Rodrygo.

“In the end it’s true that I did hit him. He says it’s an elbow and I say no,” Fali said. “I try to stop him and try to grab him. The VAR sees it and gives me a yellow card.

“In this action maybe, I went a little too far. It is not to hurt him. The still image seems to be more than it is. I try to grab his head. He says that I elbowed him, and tell him I did not.”