On-loan Barcelona star defends Vinícius Jr. after Real Madrid controversy vs Elche | OneFootball

On-loan Barcelona goalkeeper Iñaki Peña has moved to defend Vinícius Jr, after the pair were at the heart of a head-turning moment late in Real Madrid’s clash with Elche.

Xabi Alonso’s Blancos are of course fresh off dropping two points in Alicante, owing to a 2-2 draw.

Even their share of the spoils required a comeback, as Jude Bellingham levelled things up in the game’s closing moments.

In the buildup to Real’s equaliser, though, a controversial moment sparked widespread chatter.

As much came upon the aforementioned Vinícius Jr. connecting with the face of Elche shot-stopper Iñaki Peña.

The latter was left downed and bloodied by the coming together, with many (particularly of a Barcelona persuasion) adamant that the goal should have been disallowed as a result.

As alluded to above, though, post-match, Peña himself moved to play the incident down.

Drawn on as much during an interview with Movistar, the Spaniard assured:

“The incident with Vinícius? Nothing, it was just a play in the game. His knee hit me because of the movement. It ended up as a blow and that’s it. It stays on the pitch.”

Conor Laird – GSFN