Injury Excludes Vinicius Junior from Brazil Matches

Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior will miss international matches for Brazil in October after suffering a neck injury during the La Liga victory on Saturday against Villarreal.

Vinicius was substituted after 79 minutes at the Bernabeu and underwent evaluations on Sunday.

According to The Athletic, Real Madrid confirmed that Vinicius suffered a “neck injury,” and the club’s medical team also advised him against taking a long trip to join Brazil’s squad this week due to his condition.

Sources close to the player expect him to be available for Real Madrid’s match in La Liga against Celta Vigo on October 19.

The Brazilian Football Confederation later confirmed on Sunday the call-up of Andreas Pereira as a replacement for Vinicius Junior.

Brazil will face Chile and Peru in World Cup qualifiers on October 10 and 15.

After this international break, Real Madrid will face Celta Vigo in La Liga and Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League, before hosting Barcelona in El Clasico on October 26.

Vinicius scored his team’s second goal in the win over Villarreal just six minutes before his exit. The 24-year-old forward has recorded 4 goals and 7 assists in 12 matches across all competitions this season.

Real Madrid also lost Dani Carvajal due to a long-term injury during the match on Saturday in La Liga, as the right-back is set to undergo surgery after tearing ligaments and a tendon in his right knee.

Real Madrid has suffered a number of injury issues this season, with Ibrahim Diaz and Thibaut Courtois already sidelined.

Before the start of the expanded Champions League last month, Ancelotti described the schedule as “very demanding” and blamed the match calendar for Carvajal’s injury.

Ancelotti said, “The dressing room is sad and worried. This is due to the schedule. This has happened to a very important player for us.”