Calcutta: When Jude Bellignham dispossessed Emre Can and Vinicius Jr. found, the clock ticked 86 minutes. Most of the 9.1km distance Vinicius Jr would have covered had been completed, but with Borussia Dortmund struggling to get back, he saw an opportunity. So, like Forrest Gump, he ran away.

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The hat-trick was completed in stoppage time when Vinicius Jr’s weaving run troubled Waldemar Anton and Pascal Gross, the two defensive changes Dortmund had made to prevent exactly this sort of thing. After going from 0-2 to 2-2 almost as quickly as France did in the 2022 World Cup final, Real Madrid now won this match between the 2023/24 Champions League finalists 5-2. Only one team had done that in the history of the Champions League. Real Madrid.

The difference between Doha and Madrid was that Vinicius Jr. and not Kylian Mbappe was in charge, despite two assists from the French star. Emilio Butragueno, the Real legend and former Spain striker, has said that Vinicius Jr.’s third goal reminded him of Pele. Even Real manager Carlo Ancelotti, the epitome of sangfroid when Lucas Vasquez gave Real the lead, was visibly moved.

Hat trick completed, Vinicius Jr. danced. Just as he promised at the World Cup. It is said that his celebrations provoke people – in La Liga alone there have been more than 20 incidents of racist abuse against him in the past three years. But it is also an act of resistance. A statement against racist abuse. “He is a player who is favored because he can make a difference,” Ancelotti said.

While Vinicius Jr. hippie-hippie shook, the closed-roof Bernabeu exploded in celebration. The Ballon d’Or is expected on Monday and this stadium was in no doubt as to who the recipient should be.

“It is rare to see a player who plays a second half like Vinicius did. And not because of the three goals but because of his character; he is extraordinary,” Ancelotti said.

His extraordinary character was revealed when Vinicius Jr. picked Trent Alexander-Arnold’s pocket in the 2022 final. And when he got Real’s insurance target to win back the Champions League this year. Not all foals become thoroughbreds and when Karim heard Benzema tell Ferland Mendy not to pass on to him, it seemed that Vinicius Jr. maybe lost his way. That was in 2020/21, but it doesn’t feel very recent, that’s how good things have been at Real since then.

With 15 goals in 14 games in all competitions this season, he is Real’s go-to player for goals. The first indication of how involved he would be came when a boundary-breaking pass from Eder Militao reached him. The ball that brought Bellingham close to its first goal of the season came from Vinicius Jr. When Julian Brandt denied him with an excellently timed slide, Real found themselves behind through first-half goals from Donyell Malen and Jamie Bynoe-Gitten. When Vinicius Jr came back and denied Brandt, it was 2-2 with Real on the rise.

“If we score the first goal, we’ll go back,” he said. PSG, Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool will not forget what Real did to them. Dortmund will never do that.

Especially after how they started. Malen scored after Serhou Guirassy found him with a velvety pass. By staying behind when Real expected him to run, Guirassy Bynoe-Gittens helped make it 2-0. Television cameras showed Militao pounding his fist on the pitch, Rudiger trying to bury his head in it and Luka Modric looking concerned in his 431st Champions League match.

Dortmund had exposed Real’s defensive weaknesses and Ancelotti said his team were timid in the first half. After Rodrygo and Bellingham hit the horizontal line, Dortmund responded by testing Brandt Thibaut Courtois. Dortmund could still have won it, but they were playing against a team who had taken points from eleven of the last eighteen games they were trailing in Europe. Hope came from Rudiger’s header, which grew when Vinicius Jr. evened the score and even before Vasquez scored, the script started to feel familiar.