Vinicius Faces Bernabéu Plebiscite After Xabi Alonso's Forgiveness

No opponent has seen more goals from Vinicius than Valencia, with nine goals in thirteen matches. Likewise, no adversary has ignited the winger's short fuse with such intensity as the bat team, with whom he has had globally renowned clashes, such as the one held two and a half years ago in Mestalla. The echoes of that match even reached the G7 summit in Hiroshima, where Brazilian President Lula da Silva stood in solidarity with his compatriot following the racist abuse he suffered in the city of Turia. That afternoon, the player from Fluminense confronted the stands and was eventually sent off after a scuffle with Hugo Duro. This Saturday, the '7' will face the ché team again, once more in the eye of the storm, albeit for a different reason.

Vinicius's outburst of anger when he was substituted in last Sunday's clásico sets the stage for the upcoming clash, which will see the reinforced La Liga leaders face a Valencia team in the relegation zone, having only secured two points away from Mestalla. The match will be a key moment at the Bernabéu for Real Madrid's most volatile star, a day after Xabi Alonso declared the matter resolved and downplayed the fact that the player omitted the Basque coach's name in his public apology to the club, teammates, and president.

"For me, it was a very valuable, very positive statement, in which Vini showed his honesty. He spoke from the heart, about this club and what he wants to give. For me, the most important thing is what he said to his teammates and the fans. I was very satisfied," said the coach from Gipuzkoa on Friday in a press conference that was almost entirely dominated by the 'affair' that the Tolosa manager considered closed. "Tomorrow we have the match, which is the most important thing. No reprisals," added the Real Madrid coach, dismissing the possibility of punishing the player for an outburst that has disrupted the harmony within the team.

The authoritative performance in the clásico has served to reaffirm a team that has amassed 27 out of 30 possible points in La Liga and has won twelve of the thirteen matches played across all competitions. The team boasts an almost unstoppable 'killer' who received the Golden Boot on Friday for a superb campaign that he is on track to surpass this season, and seems to be regaining the best version of Bellingham, but cannot afford to let their guard down.

Precisely against the danger of easing up after a significant victory, Xabi Alonso warned in the prelude to an interwar clash that the Tolosa native takes very seriously. "Valencia won at the Bernabéu last year. We cannot relax and must respect them greatly. Corberán is a coach who prepares his teams well, and Valencia has quality and good players. It's a match with a warning because after a great victory, sometimes you lower the intensity, and we don't want that to happen," cautioned the coach, who rejected the idea that the proximity of the visit to Liverpool would influence the lineup for Saturday. "There may be rotations, but not thinking about Tuesday, rather about tomorrow and Valencia. In the Champions League, you can lose points and then recover them, but in La Liga, it doesn't work that way because it's a marathon. We're going at a good pace, but we don't want to slow down," he emphasized.

With no more injury absences than Rüdiger, Alaba, and Carvajal, plus Lunin's suspension, the match presents a good opportunity for Trent to get back into rhythm ahead of his beloved Anfield visit after being sidelined for a month and a half, and for some less regular players like Ceballos or Brahim to see action.

Facing them will be a Valencia side under significant pressure, though buoyed by the positive memory of their last visit to the Bernabéu. A last-minute goal by Hugo Duro ended the bat team's 17-year drought without a win at Chamartín last April, adding another chapter to the glory of the Getafe-born striker, who has made Real Madrid, a team he played three matches for under Zinedine Zidane, his favourite victim.

Hugo Duro has scored five goals against Real Madrid in nine matches, four of them in the last four encounters. Curiously, he has only scored as many times against another team from the Spanish capital, Atlético. After having to leave Tuesday's cup match against Maracena due to an ankle contusion, he is available to once again be one of Corberán's offensive options, who called for his team to show "resilience and personality." Diakhaby, Foulquier, Ugrinic, and Ramazani are out due to injury.

Real Madrid: Courtois, Valverde, Asencio, Huijsen, Carreras, Ceballos, Tchouaméni, Bellingham, Brahim, Mbappé, and Vinicius.

Valencia: Agirrezabala, Thierry, Tárrega, Copete, Gayà, Rioja, Pepelu, Javi Guerra, Diego López, Hugo Duro, and Danjuma.

Referee: Busquets Ferrer (Balearic Committee).

Time: 21:00 h.

Stadium: Santiago Bernabéu.

TV: Movistar LaLiga.