Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr sent off for hair pull as Jose Mourinho boycotts press conference

Real Madrid ’s Vinicius Junior was sent off for violent conduct after pulling the hair of a Villarreal player in their La Liga clash on Saturday. The winger celebrated scoring a second goal of the game when referee Isidro Diaz de Mera was called by the video assistant to review the build-up to his goal, eventually chalking it off after seeing Vinicius Jr pulled the hair of Villarreal’s Nathan Saliba when they were sprinting down the field. The referee then dispatched Vinicius Jr with a straight red card, leaving Madrid playing with 10 men from the 73rd minute, and prompting ugly scenes as the forward screamed at Diaz de Mera as his teammates tried to calm him down. Manager Jose Mourinho had run to join in the celebrations but was left furious by the decision and skipped the customary post-match press conference, reportedly because he was worried that anything he said about the incident would result in him being suspended. The manager had already been given a yellow card and had to be held back by members of staff on several occasions after decisions went against his team. Vinicius Jr later wrote on Instagram: “Sorry to my team and my fans,” but did not apologise to Saliba. The Brazilian had replaced Trent Alexander-Arnold as a second-half substitute shortly before Yan Diamonde put Madrid ahead, but only spent 20 minutes on the pitch before his sending off. “I don’t think he meant to hurt anyone but it is a red card,” Villarreal defender Juan Foyth said. Madrid clung on to win 1-0. Diaz de Mera wrote in his match report that after being shown the red card Vinicius Jr “protested my decision, raising his voice, toward where I was standing in an aggressive manner, and being held back by teammates.” He could miss El Clasico against league leaders Barcelona if the disciplinary commission decided to add to his mandatory one-game suspension. Madrid visit Barcelona in two games’ time. Additional reporting by AP