The Brazilian forward scored a hat-trick in Real Madrid’s 5-2 win over Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has praised ‘extraordinary’ Vinicius Junior after the Brazilian forward scored a second-half hat-trick to help them fight back from two goals down and beat visitors Borussia Dortmund 5-2 in the Champions League .

Ancelotti told a news conference that he was convinced that 24-year-old Vinicius would win the Ballon d’Or for the best player in the world.

“What I can say is that 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 on Tuesday.

“Vinicius is going to win the Ballon d’Or, not because of what he did tonight, but because of what he did last year. These three goals will already count towards next year’s Ballon d’Or, that much is certain. He is a player who is whistled for because he can make the difference.”

In a rematch of last season’s final, Ancelotti said there was no panic in the dressing room after Real went into half-time two goals down, and that his side had the maturity and experience to understand what they needed to do to come back . .

“We lived it calmly, calmly (during the break). We changed the system and started playing more intensely again,” Ancelotti said.

“Talking about scoring three goals may have seemed utopian, so we talked about small details like passing well, winning duels… We had to win the dynamics of the game, and from there you start winning the game.

“In the first half we were timid, we were not intense on the ball and in the second half we did better with more quality and more pressure. It was the best second half of the season.

“We have to learn from what we did in the second half. The goal is to start the game and not wait for the two of them to pass. I don’t think we can play 90 minutes with the intensity of the second half, but we can be more balanced.”