Vinícius Júnior is set to miss his second consecutive La Liga fixture, leaving Real Madrid to take on Real Valladolid without their superstar winger.
Real Madrid's attacking trio of Vinícius Júnior, Kylian Mbappé and Rodrygo are finally hitting their stride in the new year. All three forwards found the back of the net in Los Blancos' 5–1 Champions League victory over RB Salzburg for just the third time this season. Mbappé and Rodrygo will look to carry their momentum to La Liga, but they will have to do so without Vinícius Júnior up top.
The Brazilian superstar must serve the second game of his two-match La Liga ban for his straight red card against Valencia. Vinícius Júnior already missed Real Madrid's match against Las Palmas on Jan. 19 and will now be unavailable against Real Valladolid on Jan. 25.
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The good news for Real Madrid is that Vinícius Júnior will be able to return to La Liga action after this weekend's fixture. The bad news, though, is that he will also miss out in the Champions League against Brest on Jan. 29. The 24-year-old must serve a one-game suspension for yellow card accumulation in Europe's top competition.
The next time Vinícius Júnior can play for Real Madrid will not come until Los Blancos take on Espanyol on Saturday, Feb. 1. The winger will have missed seven matches across all competitions since December.
Expect Rodrygo to get the start on the left wing while Brahim Díaz gets the nod on the right wing. Along with Mbappé and Jude Bellingham, Real Madrid's front line should have no trouble getting past last-place Real Valladolid, even without Vinícius Júnior.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Why Vinicius Junior Isn't Playing for Real Madrid vs. Real Valladolid.
