{"id":314767,"date":"2025-11-26T12:39:14","date_gmt":"2025-11-26T12:39:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/314767\/"},"modified":"2025-11-26T12:39:14","modified_gmt":"2025-11-26T12:39:14","slug":"tennis-legend-rafael-nadal-not-impressed-with-vinicius-junior-antics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/314767\/","title":{"rendered":"Tennis Legend Rafael Nadal Not Impressed With Vinicius Junior Antics"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tennis icon and avid Real Madrid supporter Rafael Nadal has urged Vinicius Junior to \u201cunderstand who is in charge\u201d and respect Xabi Alonso amid the ongoing feud between the Brazilian and his manager. <\/p>\n

Madrid<\/a>\u2019s winless streak was extended to three games at the weekend following a shock 2\u20132 draw with Elche<\/a> in which Vinicius Jr was named on the bench, with Alonso opting for a bizarre tactical setup<\/a> that ultimately backfired. <\/p>\n

The winger\u2019s absence from the starting lineup only intensified speculation regarding his long-term future with Madrid, which has been a major talking point in Spain following Vinicius Jr\u2019s angry tantrum in El Cl\u00e1sico<\/a> after being substituted early\u2014an incident for which he has now apologized both publicly and privately, although without mentioning Alonso by name<\/a>. <\/p>\n

14-time French Open winner Nadal has weighed in on the Vinicius Jr debate, insisting that the forward must swallow his pride and respect Alonso\u2019s position as Madrid boss if there is to be a resolution to the conflict. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think it can be resolved through dialogue, with everyone on the same page,\u201d Nadal told Movistar+<\/a> when quizzed about the fractured relationship between Vinicius Jr and Madrid. \u201cI believe Vini needs to understand who is in charge and respect that authority, and also the club, given what it means to be a Real Madrid player.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think he\u2019s doing his best, and those things that come out of him, which sometimes aren\u2019t well-received, can be corrected through dialogue and an awareness that things can be improved.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first person who needs to want to explore that path of improvement has to be him. When I hear him speak in interviews, saying that he wants to improve in every aspect, I think he needs to find strong allies, and I\u2019m convinced that Real Madrid will have the right people, and he will be there to advise him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Xabi<\/p>\n

Xabi Alonso (left) and Vin\u00edcius J\u00fanior (right) are struggling to see eye to eye. \/ Carl Recine\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

The Vinicius Jr saga has cast doubt over his long-term future at the Santiago Bernab\u00e9u, fueled primarily by his outburst as he stormed off the pitch during the clash with Barcelona, roaring: \u201cAlways me, I\u2019m leaving the team, it\u2019s better if I leave, I\u2019m leaving.\u201d<\/p>\n

While his subsequent apology has been accepted and he\u2019s featured four times for Los Blancos since, there remain doubts over his place in the Spanish capital. <\/p>\n

The 25-year-old has refused to continue contract negotiations with Madrid<\/a> while his relationship with Alonso remains strained. Discussions over a renewal began in January, but have since stalled. <\/p>\n

Vinicius Jr, whose current deal expires in 2027, has only managed nine goal contributions in 17 Madrid matches this season\u2014a fairly tame record for someone of his supreme quality. <\/p>\n

READ THE LATEST REAL MADRID NEWS, TRANSFER RUMORS AND MORE<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tennis icon and avid Real Madrid supporter Rafael Nadal has urged Vinicius Junior to \u201cunderstand who is in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":314768,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[72],"tags":[99,428],"class_list":{"0":"post-314767","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tennis","8":"tag-sports","9":"tag-tennis"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=314767"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314767\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/314768"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=314767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=314767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=314767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}