Brazil moved close to finishing first in Group G at the 2026 World Cup after a strong start against Scotland, led by a brace from Vinicius Junior. The Real Madrid forward exploited Scotland’s poor defending and also had another goal disallowed.
Vinicius became the first Brazil player to score in all three group-stage matches at a World Cup. The last Brazilians to do that were Rivaldo and Ronaldo in 2002, when Brazil went on to win its most recent World Cup title.
Spanish media reacted with praise. Marca called it a “hot brace for Vinicius,” while AS wrote, “Vinicius is simply an alien!”
With his two first-half goals, Vinicius reached four goals at this World Cup, moving to within one of Lionel Messi. He is now level on four goals with Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe.