<p>The campaign for Vinicius Junior to land his first Ballon d&rsquo;Or is well under way, but the Real Madrid forward has his priorities straight.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Before worrying about individual accolades, the Brazilian attacker is aiming to claim a second Champions League triumph on Saturday when Los Blancos face Borussia Dortmund at Wembley.</p>
<h2>Won it for Real in 2022</h2>
<p>Vinicius was the man who brought Real Madrid their record 14th European Cup in 2022, stealing into the area from the left and pouncing from close range in the 1-0 win over Liverpool.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Thrown into the void left by departed all-time top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo in 2018, Vinicius started off as a laughing stock, given his profligacy.&nbsp;</p>
<p>After coach Carlo Ancelotti returned for a second stint at the helm in 2021, the Brazilian proved the main beneficiary.&nbsp;</p>
<p>After 14 goals in three seasons before the Italian&rsquo;s arrival, Vinicius netted 22 under Ancelotti&rsquo;s guidance. It was no fluke, with the forward adding 23 goals the following year and he has 23 again ahead of the final against Bundesliga side Dortmund.</p>
<h2>&lsquo;Can play in more positions&rsquo;</h2>
<p>Ancelotti has largely deployed Vinicius as a central striker, a role which the winger took time to adapt to. &ldquo;Now I can play in more positions and that&rsquo;s how I&rsquo;ve made my game a lot better than when I arrived here,&rdquo; Vinicius told reporters ahead of the final.&nbsp;<br />&nbsp;<br />Asked if he would take a 1-0 win over Dortmund like two years ago against Liverpool, with him scoring the winner, Vinicius replied &ldquo;for sure.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p>
<p>&ldquo;With a goal from anyone,&rdquo; he continued, aiming for the UCL above any individual considerations. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never thought about [winning the Ballon d&rsquo;Or]. The best thing that can happen this season is winning the Champions League,&rdquo; said Vinicius.</p>
<h2>We shouldn&rsquo;t be afraid: Dortmund&rsquo;s Nico</h2>
<p>Built on grit and graft but with a hint of flair, few players embody coach Edin Terzic&rsquo;s Borussia Dortmund more than centre-back Nico Schlotterbeck. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Schlotterbeck was chomping at the bit to take on the Spanish giants and said Dortmund should relish their underdog status. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve always wanted to play against Real, for me they&rsquo;re the biggest club in the world. But we shouldn&rsquo;t be afraid, we shouldn&rsquo;t be in awe. It has to be a completely normal game for us,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="font-size: x-small;"><em>This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever</em></span></p>

Real Madrid’s Brazilian striker picks UCL title over Ballon d’Or; says coach Ancelotti has helped him evolve and arrive at season’s most important phase on a be

Winicius junior!

Ronaldo lets it all out!

Real Madrid’s Brazilian striker picks UCL title over Ballon d’Or; says coach Ancelotti has helped him evolve and arrive at season’s most important phase on a better level

Winicius junior!

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