Real Madrid lost further ground in the La Liga title race over the weekend as Carlo Ancelotti’s side drew 3-3 at neighbours Rayo Vallecano.
Los Blancos have now won just one of their last three league games, with Barcelona dropping points in a home defeat to Leganes, and Atletico Madrid overtaking Real Madrid to move into second place in the rankings.
However, the issues could deepen for Ancelotti in the coming days, with Vinicius Junior facing a potential La Liga investigation following a controversial moment after the game.
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The Brazil international was introduced as a late substitute in Vallecas, with Ancelotti looking to keep him fresh for the FIFA Intercontinental Cup final in Qatar on December 18, and he endured a controversial cameo.
After being cautioned for dissent, the home fans jeered his protests to the officials, and his fifth La Liga yellow card of the season means he will miss their final league game of 2024 at home to Sevilla on December 22.
However, as per reports from Spanish outlet Marca, Vinicius Jr is now in hot water with La Liga after appearing to mock Rayo supporters as he left the pitch at full-time.
Footage shared on social media shows him pointing at supporters and making reference to the club being potentially relegated from the top-flight in 2025.
Que buena persona es Vinicius Luther King Jr. diciéndole a un niño del Rayo Vallecano que su equipo va a bajar a Segunda. pic.twitter.com/eBJtlV2SoV
— Llourinho (@Llourinho) December 15, 2024
Rayo Vallecano respond to Vinicius Jr. gestures
Rayo club president Raul Martin Presa has criticised Real Madrid’s No.7 labelling his conduct as ‘unacceptable’.
The incident has now been passed over to the RFEF Disciplinary Committee to look into with Vinicius potentially facing a ban if found guilty of misconduct.
Are Rayo Vallecano in danger of relegation from La Liga?
Well, not really.
There are still a lot of games to play, and Rayo are only six points clear of the relegation zone. However they are also 13th, with four other teams between themselves and third-bottom Espanyol.
It will be a tight scrap for survival between multiple clubs at this rate, but between the volume of teams within close proximity of the bottom three, Vallecano’s slight edge on many of them for now and the fact they just held Real Madrid for a morale-boosting point, they’ll fancy their chances of making Vini Jr’s gestures look foolish.
