Vinícius reveals the secret behind his dip in form: it is hard to accept what happened at the World Cup
The spectre of elimination haunts him
Vinicius Junior has admitted the spectre of World Cup elimination still haunts him, and the Brazilian star insists his dip in form with the Seleção is tied directly to that painful exit.
The Real Madrid forward spoke after Brazil beat Australia 4-2 in a friendly, a match that saw him return to the scoresheet after a long goalless run.
The World Cup's impact still lingers
Vinicius told reporters after the game: "The impact of the World Cup is always enormous, and coming back is always a little difficult."
Norway had knocked Brazil out in the round of 16, an early exit that ended a tournament in which Vinicius shone. He started all five matches, scored four goals and provided an assist before it all came crashing down.
"We played very badly in the first match, and as the coach said, we are in a trial period, but we know that we are required to win every match we play with Brazil," the Brazilian added.
He continued: "Today, on a perfect pitch, we managed to put in a great performance, but there are many things we must adjust, reduce the number of goals we concede, and create more chances."
A penalty to restore confidence
One moment against Australia stood out. Vinicius stepped up to take Brazil's second penalty, even though Bruno Guimaraes is the usual taker in Raphinha's absence.
Vinicius lifted the lid on what happened: "Bruno is the one who usually takes the penalties when Raphinha isn't playing, and I thought he wanted to take it, but he knows I need some confidence."
He was honest about his recent struggles: "I played several matches without scoring any goal with the national team, and I felt the importance of returning to scoring. There are some matches we did not win, but it is important to score again, and it is important to play for our national team once more."
Carlo Ancelotti took a major morale boost from the 4-2 win as the Australian tour wrapped up. The Italian was keen to back his forward publicly, urging him to be patient until he rediscovers his best form.
That penalty handed Vinicius a feeling he badly needed ahead of the upcoming clash with India. Now he will hope it marks the genuine start of the comeback, and the return of the confidence he himself admits is missing.
