Brazil forward Vinicius Jr has dismissed suggestions that he gave up a penalty in pursuit of individual accolades, insisting that head coach Carlo Ancelotti had already decided Bruno would take the spot-kick. The Real Madrid winger made the clarification in comments shared by football journalist Fabrizio Romano on his official……
Brazil forward Vinicius Jr has dismissed suggestions that he gave up a penalty in pursuit of individual accolades, insisting that head coach Carlo Ancelotti had already decided Bruno would take the spot-kick.
The Real Madrid winger made the clarification in comments shared by football journalist Fabrizio Romano on his official X account on Monday.
“Ancelotti decided to give the penalty to Bruno,” Vinicius said.
“The coach chooses who will take the penalty kick beforehand. He chose Bruno. I was never selfish, I never wanted to be the top scorer of the competition, and that’s why Bruno took it.”
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Vinicius’ remarks come after Brazil’s 2-1 defeat to Norway in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Round of 32. During the match, Brazil was awarded a first-half penalty, but Bruno Guimarães, who was selected to take the spot-kick, saw his effort saved by Norway goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland.
Brazil remains the only nation to have featured in every FIFA World Cup since the tournament began, but the five-time champions have been unable to add to—or successfully defend—their historic title in recent editions.
