London [UK], March 2: Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa has praised "extraordinary" Vinicius Junior as the Brazil forward looks to continue his impressive form.
Vinicius has shown little signs of the fall out from being the alleged target of racial abuse during the first leg of the Champions League play-off tie against Benfica impacting on his performances.
The 25-year-old went on to score another crucial goal in the 2-1 second-leg win back at the Bernabeu on Wednesday night.
Real Madrid host south city rivals Getafe on Monday night and Arbeloa has no doubts Vinicius will again look to deliver a standout display, having scored six goals in his last five games.
"I don't know if I have pressed any specific button. The credit is his, as he is a fantastic and extraordinary footballer," Arbeloa told a press conference.
"My only credit, if I have any, is giving him a lot of confidence, care and trying to encourage his team-mates to look for him and, above all, to find him in situations where he can showcase his talent and abilities - taking on opponents, dribbling, running into space, creating one-on-one situations, or as he did the other day, sprinting.
"He is a decisive, fundamental player and as a coach, my only task is to create as many situations as possible where Vini Jr can exploit his qualities, which will make us play better and become more dangerous." Real continue to monitor the fitness of Kylian Mbappe, who is managing a knee problem and could be a doubt for the Champions League last-16 tie against Manchester City.
Arbeloa said: "We are very clear about what is happening and what we want now - for him to fully recover from these discomforts so he can return at 100%, with maximum confidence and the greatest possible security, ensuring he feels completely recovered and those minor discomforts disappear.
"We will take it day-by-day and monitor the progress. He will see how he feels, how he recovers and how the evolution goes.
"At this moment, it is better not to set deadlines because it is essentially discomfort and we need to proceed day-by-day to see how he feels and based on that, we will make decisions.
"We want him to return at 100% and when that happens, he will come back." Arbeloa will not lose focus as the key European clash approaches, with the first leg set to be at home on March 11.
"When the time comes, we will prepare to the fullest, knowing the challenges it will bring," he said.
After last weekend's shock late defeat at Osasuna, Arbeloa will not take Getafe lightly as his side look to close the four-point gap on leaders Barcelona.
"We are very eager, focused and aware of the difficulty of the opponent," Arbeloa said.
Source: Qatar Tribune
