"There would be trouble for sure" - Atletico Madrid captain Koke warns Real Madrid superstar about his celebrations ahead of the Madrid derby
Atletico Madrid skipper Koke has warned Real Madrid ace Vinicius Junior that he could get into trouble for his controversial Samba dance celebration in the forthcoming Madrid derby.
Real Madrid left-winger Vinicius Junior has enjoyed an encouraging start to the 2022-23 campaign, scoring five goals and claiming three assists in eight appearances across competitions. In his last La Liga outing against Mallorca, Vinicius Junior found the back of the net and pulled off a little Samba dance while celebrating. Mallorca coach Javier Aguirre was seemingly angered by his dance and asked his players to break him (via Sport).
Joyful young man. Disgusting provoker. https://t.co/pLefrcf0xF
Ahead of Sunday’s (September 18) Madrid derby, Atletico Madrid captain Koke was asked to comment on the Brazilian winger’s celebration. The Spaniard gave him full freedom to do what he wanted but warned that his celebration would not be well received at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium. Speaking to Movistar, Koke said (via Sport):
“If he scores a goal (Vinicius) and decides to dance, he will do what he wanted to do.”
When asked whether he would understand his celebration, Koke added:
“Everyone has their own way of being and celebrating goals as they want, but there would be trouble for sure. It would be the most normal thing.”
Ahead of Sunday’s derby at the Wanda Metropolitano, Atletico find themselves in seventh position in the La Liga standings (10 points in 5 games). Los Blancos, on the other hand, are the current league leaders, having won all five of their matches so far.
Atletico Madrid striker Alvaro Morata defends Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior celebration
Former Real Madrid man Alvaro Morata was also asked to comment on Vinicius Junior’s celebration against Mallorca. The Atletico Madrid striker defended the Real Madrid ace’s celebration, assuring that the youngster did not mean to offend anyone.
All I need is Vinicius jr goal x this celebration against ATM. https://t.co/rpwfuQC4wb
Speaking to Marca (via Madrid Universal), Morata said:
“He is a good boy and I don’t think he wants to offend anyone. Everyone has the right to celebrate goals as they like as long as it is with respect towards us and our fans.”
Vinicius Junior has faced Los Rojiblancos eight times in his career across competitions, enjoying five wins and tasting defeat on one occasion. The winger is yet to open his goalscoring account against Atletico Madrid but has claimed three assists.