On Matchday 7 of the 2026–27 LaLiga season, Real Madrid faced Atletico Madrid in the first Madrid Derby of the campaign. Unfortunately for Los Merengues, they left the Metropolitano Stadium with a 2–1 defeat, with Vinicius Junior once again struggling at Los Colchoneros’ home ground.
In desperate need of a victory given Barcelona’s blistering form, Real Madrid visited the Metropolitano Stadium for a grueling clash against Atletico Madrid, only to leave empty-handed.
One heavily criticized player was Vinicius Junior. The Brazilian winger continues to struggle at the Metropolitano Stadium and was substituted in the 54th minute, extending his scoreless streak at Atletico’s home ground.
Vinicius Junior struggles at Atletico Madrid’s Metropolitano Stadium
Real Madrid always expect monumental performances from their star players—the ones labeled as “clutch.” Nevertheless, Vinicius Junior has fallen far short of those expectations when facing Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano Stadium.
Vinicius Junior of Real Madrid warms up prior to the LaLiga EA Sports match.
The Brazilian winger, who recently signed a lucrative contract extension, failed to find the back of the net on Sunday, extending his goal drought at Atletico’s home ground to nine consecutive matches, according to Spanish statistician MisterChip.
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Beyond the lack of goals, his underlying numbers are far from what Real Madrid envision. In nine appearances at the Metropolitano, Vinicius Junior has registered just two assists, 14 shots (five on target), a 33% dribble success rate (15/45), and a 33% duel win rate (37/105).
Atletico Madrid continue to be one of the toughest opponents for the winger. Across 21 official matches against Los Colchoneros, Vinicius has scored just three goals—all coming away from the Metropolitano.
LaLiga title race becomes complicated for Real Madrid
MisterChip also noted that Real Madrid’s derby defeat leaves Los Merengues six points behind Barcelona, the current LaLiga leaders after seven matchdays.
In club history, Real Madrid have overcome a deficit of six or more points to win the league title only once. During the 2006–07 season, Real Madrid trailed Barcelona by six points on Matchday 24, but eventually finished level on 76 points at the end of the campaign to claim the title via their superior head-to-head record.
