Concerns with Vinicius Junior's red card? 'PATHETIC!' | ESPN FC

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Vinicius Junior's hair-pull red card sparks ESPN FC debate over Mourinho and Real Madrid's response

The show discusses Real Madrid's 1-0 win in which Vinicius Junior had a goal disallowed and was sent off for pulling an opponent's hair. The panel criticizes Jose Mourinho's press-conference no-show and Real Madrid TV's grievance narrative, predicts a suspension that could rule Vinicius out of the Clasico, and argues Real Madrid's bigger concern is their form before facing Barcelona.

On ESPN FC, Craig Burley, Nedum Onuoha and Stevie Nicol weigh in on Vinicius Junior's red card in Real Madrid vs. Villarreal. 0:00 Real Madrid 1-0 Villarreal 2:22 Jose Mourinho's behavior 6:37 Barcelona and Real Madrid's schedules 7:26 Final thoughts ✔️ Subscribe to ESPN Unlimited: https://plus.espn.com/ ESPN ESPNFC

Transcript

A buy a hair says the front page of marker. Real Madrid got the victory against Via Real. Diamandi with his first goal of the season, winning 1-0il. The big story. Venicious Junior thought that he' scored. It had been called back though for pulling hair in the buildup. He would be red carded. Chaos would then ensue. Of course, he's facing a suspension as we welcome in Alex Kirkland. Alex, what's been the reaction over the last 24 hours? Vinnie's obviously come out and apologize. Josie Marinho refused to do the press conference. He was so angry. What's been the reaction amongst the fans? >> Yeah, everyone just stunned by this passage of play, Dan. It was incredible to be there. Can't remember many incidents like this. In fact, we've never had in La Liga v disallowing a goal and sending off the goal scorer in the same action. That's how rare it is. As you say, Vinnie apologizing. I was sat there at the in the Bale press room waiting for Jose Mourin to come out last night. He never did. for this to happen. You know, if the gold had stood, it was pretty clear what the narrative was. I think, you know, master stroke for Mourinho to to leave him out. He brings him on, he scores. You know, this is the start of the way back for Vinnie and they can start building up to the classical at the end of this month. But now the goal not standing and not just that Vinnie facing a suspension as well. We'll find out this week. It's normally on Tuesday that these disciplinary sanctions come out from the federation. um not just the sending off but his reaction as well noted in the referee's report talking about Venicious reacting angrily to being sended off and and being held back by his teammates. You would expect a couple of game ban and that means no Classico and in the meantime you've got Diamande who came in and scored and did pretty well and will get more chances now to to impress. So I think really interesting where it leaves Venicious and where it leaves Mourinho because for him it was a big moment as well. We saw Jose running onto the pitch to celebrate with Vinnie after after scoring and like I say, you know, it vindicated his decision to drop him. >> We haven't heard from Jose. As I say, we will this week. But yeah, we're going to leave those two. I think is is hard to say right now. It >> it's pathetic really, isn't it, from Jose Mourinho, Alex, because the letter of the law says if you pull someone's hair, that's violet condo, it's a red card. He pulled his hair, accidental or not, it doesn't matter. It It's a red card. So, what's Jose Mourinho so furious about? Maybe yet again we're in a situation it's that Real Madrid were this is pretty much the Atletico Madrid Real Madrid again but against a Val side just had nothing in the final third. >> It does feel like we are racing through the Jose Mourinho playbook doesn't it? It's only October. You know where are we going to be by Christmas if he carries on at this rate? He's already skipping press conferences. We had the print out. You know we've had sort of conspiratorial suggestions. I think he he skips the press. I my interpretation is because what does he say? cuz like you say, it's the correct decision, but at least if he skips the press conference, it gives us something else to um to talk about and maybe it helps or his idea is that it helps sort of fan the flames of this they're all against us. The referees are against us kind of talk that we've been hearing from from Mourinho. So yeah, I I don't know, but like I say, it feels like, you know, he's going to even Jose if he carries on at this pace, is he not going to run out of stuff to do if if we're here already? It feels like this is sort of, you know, late in the season stuff, not October. He's he has to be angry with the player. He has to be can't be angry at the official. There's absolutely nothing the officials can do here. >> But the the the the narrative is that he couldn't come out and speak because he would have got suspended for the next goodness knows how many games. >> Well, that's just stupid because otherwise comment about how they got it all wrong and how it was everything was against Real Madrid. There was clear intent to pull hair. In fact, it jolted the player's neck back a little bit. It was one of the >> of all the hair pulls we've seen, it was actually one of the more obvious and one of the more powerful pulls of a an opponent's player's head. Uh hair uh it to me this would have been quite an easy press conference from me. He came he he could have come in and said, "Look, we got the three points. I made a big decision to to to to drop uh Ben's junior." I got a reaction from him in terms of the goal, but I'm really disappointed in his actions and now he's got a suspension and we have to we have to accept that. That that's that's pretty easy. You know, people will say, "Well, what about Vinnie?" And he'll say, "I'll speak to the player. I'll speak to the player privately. We will deal with it and he will have to take the consequences, but we're not we're not going to argue about the red card because it was clear." >> But this isn't how they work. This is Real Madrid very much the world is against us. Real Madrid TV last night putting out all these different hair pools that weren't punished in the past and all this sort of thing. So Jose doesn't want to come out and say actually the officials were right on this one because that completely destroys the whole narrative they're trying to build. >> Well, he's got a bigger problem. >> He's not going to change it then, is he? If he if he just goes along with it, the reason he was brought in was to change it, right? To change Vinnie's change Vinnie's game, change the whole outlook in the whole club >> change. But what he's done, absolutely not. He's doubled down on what was already going on because of this. I mean, and again, Vinnie, to to react the way he did after he got the red card tells you that he has no idea what's going on. He just he's not in Where's the reality? >> Is there any that people are suggesting it's accidental? He's just grappling. Listen, we've all done something stupid. And a second after you do it, some more than others. >> Yeah, exactly. But a second after you do it, if you're a normal rational type of professional and player, particularly at that level, then you you're kind of going, what what have I done here? >> But not this guy. This guy's has no idea that he thinks he's done nothing wrong. And then his manager doubles down and and Craig's spot on. This is the this is the opportunity to to be the rational one and be the sensible one. instead he doubled down and just made it worse than it actually probably could be. >> They were better in the second half. They were poor in the first half. They were better. They won the game as you rightly said because Vale were organized but offered literally nothing going forward. A couple of late strikes that were the straight at Table Cotto. Uh they have some Champions League games but they have severe nicks before the classical. To me, his biggest concern shouldn't be how every how the whole, you know, tab Tash is against him and the referees are against him. My bigger concern would be what the hell are we what version of Real Madrid is going to turn up in the 25th of October at the camp now? Because at this moment in time, the smart money would be on Barcelona ripping this Real Madrid side to shreds. That would be my big that would be my concern. That would be my main focus if I was the Real Madrid manager is how can I get all these players in the happy place in the right place for these upcoming important games because if these games go against Real Madrid and Mourinho then leading up to Christmas we're going to be talking about the same thing we were talking about last year with Chabby Alonzo is he gonna see yeah >> into the new year because we know what Florentino or Perez is like. There's one team playing well at the moment or really out of the big two. Atletico Madrid have got a head of steam together and Real Betas are also uh playing better I would say than Real Madrid but Barcelona apart nobody can play football with them in Spain at the moment and Mourinho has to find a way to stop that and he's only got a couple of weeks to to solve it. >> Nathan, what's your take on the Venicious Junior Mourinho situation? Yeah. So the Marino thing is interesting especially with Read TV as you say showing all the different examples of people pulling hair nothing you know being given like what I always think to myself with that are they trying to say that these were all mistakes or these were all the right decisions because if you're saying these are mistakes that that the fact that they weren't given then you're justifying the decision that was made to send off Venicious Junior for the hairpool. And I think for Venicious himself as is the case with probably certain things that we've done whether it's a shirt and so on. I don't think you're necessarily always aware of what you've done in the moment. And I'm glad that you know he's looked at the video and he's apologized for his behavior for the incident itself because I think for the way that we see football whether we like the rule or not like that is going to be a red card all the time. And I think in some ways it's a good spot from the um from the video system referee and the referee. And to be honest, the thing that probably bailed him out a little bit is the fact that the player didn't react more because I think if the player that had his air pulled was just laying on the floor, I think that decision probably happens a lot lot quicker. Real Madrid TV are extremely embarrassing. I mean, >> how can anybody even work for them? >> Well, I don't know, Craig. >> I mean, you got to be in a real desperate. I mean, you got you really got to be a little >> It really changed when I left to be honest. >> You got to be I mean, how in the heck did you make it from Real Madrid TV to here? Holy smokes. >> Very cheap. >> There has to be, >> Alex. Craig mentioned it. >> Is he still going to be in charge at Christmas? I mean, look, Mourinho has a lot more credit in the bank with Florentino Perez than pretty much any other coach. We've talked about this. He is the coach of all the coaches they've had that Florentino has always rated, has always really thought brings value. You know, he's a guy who generally isn't keen on coaches in general. Doesn't rate coaches in general, thinks that they are their importance is overstated. But not with Mourinho. He always said Mourinho laid the foundations for the last decade of success. And Mourinho, I think, gets more time than anyone else does. I think he gets more time than Jabi Alonzo did, Araloa did. Still, there would come a point if results don't go their way if they are trading well behind Barcelona where a decision might have to be made, but I think he gets more time than pretty much any other coach would in this situation. >> What's your gut say about the suspension, Alex? >> I think I think he's going to miss Clasco almost for sure. I'd be amazed if it's not at least two games. It might be a third. And of course, if it's two games, that's six. to the and it's the classical. I think that's that's pretty much a given. >> My former employees have different views on that. Alex, just a reminder as we say goodbye to Alex, we'll be there for our classical in two weeks time. It is Real Madrid against Barcelona. Be sure to join us for that.