Real Madrid have recovered well from their painful 0-4 defeat against Barcelona. The Royals were too strong for number five Osasuna on Saturday with a 4-0 , which means that the gap to leader Barcelona is now six points. Vinícius Júnior scored a hat-trick and was sung to by the home crowd.The first of Vinicius’ three goals came in the 34th ^minute , with the left winger advancing into the penalty area and placing the ball in the far right corner. Four minutes before the break, Jude Bellingham doubled the score, chipping the ball over the advancing goalkeeper Sergio Herrera after a through ball from Raul Asencio.

After an hour of play, Vinícius made it 3-0, this time after an assist from goalkeeper (!) Andriy Lunin. When Lunin plucked the ball out of the air after a corner from Osasuna, he sent Vinícius into the deep at lightning speed. Then, one-on-one with goalkeeper Herrera, the attacker made no mistake. With a shot from close range, Vinícius determined the final score at 4-0.

Crowd cheers Vinicius

It was the Brazilian’s twelfth goal of the season and his fourth since missing out on the Ballon d’Or ten days ago. ” Balón de Oro, Vinícius Balón de Oro “, the Santiago Bernabéu chanted after the 4-0. Vinícius was substituted shortly afterwards to loud applause, after which Real Madrid played out the match. It was striking that fellow attacker Kylian Mbappé, who is struggling with his form, was booed after a failed action.

Worries for Ancelotti

The result is cause for celebration in Madrid, but coach Carlo Ancelotti has plenty of worries left over from the match. In the first half, Rodrygo and Éder Militão were out with serious-looking injuries , while Lucas Vázquez was left injured in the dressing room at half-time. Brahim Díaz, Raul Asencio and Luka Modric were their replacements respectively.