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Vinicius Junior put in a monstrous performance to help Real Madrid beat 10-man Barcelona 4-1 and win the Supercopa de Espana tonight (January 14).
The Brazilian superstar was man-of-the-match, conjuring up one of the best displays of his Madrid career. He helped himself to his first-ever El Clasico hat-trick and did so in style.
Vinicius opened the scoring in the seventh minute when he linked up with Jude Bellingham. He rounded Barca goalkeeper Inaki Pena before slotting the ball into an empty net.
The Brazil international then hit a brace three minutes later when he was found at the back post by Rodrygo. He was running the show at KSU Stadium and giving Ronald Araujo a torrid night.
Barca hit back through Robert Lewandowski's volley but Vinicius once again came to the fore in the 39th minute. This time he scored from the penalty spot after initially winning the spot-kick after being brought to the ground by Araujo.
That completed a masterful first-half hat-trick for the 23-year-old and he continued to be a thorn in Barcelona's side in the second half. He forced Araujo into making a foul that saw the Uruguayan defender handed his second yellow card and a subsequent red card.
Vinicius also made two key passes, won five of 11 ground duels, and ran Barca ragged all night in Saudi Arabia. It was a display that earned him deserved praise from fans on social media.
One fan felt the young forward dominated the Catalan giants on his own:
"This man destroyed Barca on his own DAMN!!"
A Los Blancos fan was equally as praiseful:
"We dunked on them."
Here's how fans on X (formerly Twitter) reacted to the Selecao star's stunning showing as Real Madrid won the Supercopa de Espana:
Guti hailed Vinicius as a phenomenon before the Real Madrid star destroyed Barcelona
Vinicius has been a revelation at the Santiago Bernabeu since arriving from Palmeiras for a reported €45 million in 2018. His hat-trick tonight takes him onto 68 goals and as many assists in 240 games for Los Blancos.
The young attacker has stepped up when Madrid have needed him most. That includes his winner in the 2019 UEFA Champions League final 1-0 victory against Liverpool.
Barcelona have some exciting talent of their own with the likes of Spanish duo Gavi and Pedri. But, they are truly yet to dominate not only Spanish football but European football like Los Merengues' number seven.
Real Madrid icon Guti talked up the Brazilian's qualities, hailing him for improving his finishing. He said last season (via ManagingMadrid):
"Vinicius is a phenomenon. He has improved so much in his finishing and his decision-making. He is very fast, very daring and very confident. He is one of the best players in the world right now and he has a lot of potential to keep growing. He is a key player for Real Madrid and for Brazil."
The two-time La Liga champion is also proving to be Barcelona's kryptonite in this era's El Clasico rivalry. He's posted six goals and two assists in 16 games against the Catalan giants across competitions.
