Vinícius Júnior roars back into form, much to the Bernabéu’s delight

MADRID, Spain — This time, the cheers drowned out the whistles.

Real Madrid won back the Santiago Bernabéu crowd on Tuesday night with a 6-1 rout of AS Monaco in the UEFA Champions League. The win served as a balm on the wounds caused by a traumatic start to 2026, which saw the team beaten in two cup competitions and lose Xabi Alonso, the man meant to lead their new era.

Three days earlier, as Madrid hosted Levante in LaLiga, there had been deafening whistles here for the home team — and in particular, Vinícius Júnior — as the fans expressed their noisy disapproval at the team’s direction of travel.

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It was the only topic of conversation ahead of the game. Would the Champions League, Madrid’s favorite competition, be any different?

“If they whistle, they should whistle the whole squad,” Kylian Mbappé said on Monday. “Don’t single out one player… It’s the team’s fault.”

“I respect the opinion of the Bernabéu,” Alonso’s replacement, Álvaro Arbeloa, had said. “I know the Bernabéu crowd. We have to turn those whistles into applause.”

“The fans pay their money, work all week, save up to come to Real Madrid games to support us, they’re entitled to say what they want,” said Jude Bellingham. “I don’t think it’s always very helpful for the teams or for individuals, speaking from experience now, I know it’s not the nicest thing in the world, but they’re entitled to their opinion.”

In the minutes before kick off on Tuesday, though, there was an awkward silence. When the match started — unlike on Saturday — there were no whistles for Vinícius’ every touch, or for Bellingham’s. It was as if the Bernabéu crowd had lost its appetite for hectoring the team, but wasn’t yet ready to commit to cheering in full-throated support, either. The players would have to earn that on the field.

Five minutes into the game, Mbappé did just that. It was a flowing team move, even more eye-catching given just how rare that kind of smooth, collective play has been from an often workmanlike Madrid this season.

Franco Mastantuono — who looks revitalized under Arbeloa, having lost his way under Alonso — played a pass inside to Federico Valverde, who, on the turn, found Mbappé in space. The finish put Mbappé into double figures in the Champions League this season.

After that, it was all about Vinícius. For him, the most under-pressure, in-the-spotlight of Madrid’s players in recent months — in part due to his contract renewal standoff, and in part thanks to a record of one goal in 19 games — a positive team display wouldn’t suffice to quieten the criticism. Vinícius would need to shine individually.

Scoring one goal and creating three more did the trick. It was an individual performance that just kept getting better. As Vinícius’ confidence grew, the memory of the whistles grew distant, and some of the old magic returned.

It was a reminder that, when on form, there are still a few players who come close to Vinícius’ ability to carve open a team in the final third. On 26 minutes, Arda Güler played Vinícius in behind the defense on the left, and the Brazilian crossed for Mbappé to add his second of the game.

His contribution had already been convincing enough that, when an unnecessary trick didn’t come off before half time, a handful of scattered whistles were instantly overcome by louder, encouraging cheers. It was a sign of what was to come in the second half. Not long after halftime, Vinícius, almost through on goal himself, shrugged off a challenge from a defender and found Mastantuono to make it 3-0.

Now there were some cautious chants — not picked up by the rest of the stadium — of “Vinícius Júnior” from the singing section behind one of the Bernabéu goals. Four minutes later, another Vinícius cross was turned into his net by Thilo Kehrer. It was now a hat trick of goals created for the forward, but one thing was missing: a goal for himself.

It came on 63 minutes, and it was a special, individual goal, just what Vinícius badly needed. In the Spanish Supercopa final earlier this month he had delivered a goal of a similar calibre, but that had come far from home, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and in the context of a defeat to Barcelona.

This was a goal at the Bernabéu, his first in over three months. After celebrating with his teammates, there was another, powerfully symbolic moment, as Vinícius ran across to embrace Arbeloa.

Vinícius’ broken relationship with Alonso was a crucial factor in the former coach’s departure, and in the player’s poor form, which robbed him of his status as an untouchable member of the team. Arbeloa has made him feel special again.

“[Vinícius] has been writing his history at Real Madrid for years,” Arbeloa said on Monday.

“He’s given us two Champions Leagues, magical nights. I think he needs the Bernabéu to be at his best.”

A day later, the new coach was proved right. There was still time for Bellingham, another of the players who has been most scrutinized in recent days, to score, too, completing the rout, after Monaco had pulled a goal back.

It made the night complete. All three of Madrid’s biggest stars — Mbappé, Vinícius, and Bellingham — had delivered. Some context is required. Monaco are ninth in Ligue 1, and have lost seven of their last eight league games.

This performance and result should not be taken as confirmation that Arbeloa’s Madrid are ready to compete with Europe’s best. But Madrid didn’t need that on Tuesday; they just needed to get the Bernabéu back on their side. And they did that, in some style.