How Real Madrid's players reacted on social media to Vinicius Junior's Ballon d'Or snub

After Vinicius Junior put the gloss on a 2-0 Champions League final victory over Borussia Dortmund in June, Carlo Ancelotti captured the thoughts of many when he predicted: "Ballon d'Or, no doubt."

It didn't quite pan out like that. Much to the surprise of all those associated with Real Madrid, Manchester City's Rodri pipped the Brazilian to the Ballon d'Or. This closely guarded secret only broke on the day of the ceremony, when it emerged that Vinicius and his entourage would boycott the event in Paris.

Once Madrid's hierarchy learned that Dani Carvajal would also miss out on the top prize, the entire club ordered every representative to snub the ceremony. Carlo Ancelotti missed out on his chance to accept the award for men's coach of the year and, more embarrassingly, Didier Drogba had to swiftly brush over the fact that Real Madrid had been voted as men's club of the year.

Madrid released a bitter statement to The Athletic which read: "If the award criteria do not proclaim Vinicius the winner, those same criteria should proclaim Carvajal the winner. As this has not been the case, it is obvious that the UEFA-Ballon d'Or does not respect Real Madrid. And Real Madrid is not where it is not respected."

No Madrid players were at the event, so had time to show their support for Vinicius from the comfort of their own homes via social media. Ferland Mendy set the template which would be followed by most of his teammates, posting a picture of himself alongside Vinicius beneath a caption calling him the "best player in the world".

Eduardo Camavinga reassured Vinicius by telling him: "You don't need that." Centre-back Eder Militao wrote: "You are the best and no one can take that away from you! The Best!"

Fede Valverde extended his praise beyond the pitch, posting: "There is no award that certifies how good you are. And I'm not just talking about your quality as a player. But off the field too. I love you brother."

Retired midfielder Toni Kroos was one of the outside shouts for the prize, but seemed typically unflustered about the entire procedure. "I have never seen the importance of these individual awards in football, they have no place," the German told assembled media on the day of the award. When it was confirmed that Vinicius would miss out, Kroos posted a picture beneath two words: "The best".

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