Brazilian forward Vinicius Junior has signed a four-year contract extension with Real Madrid at Santiago Bernabeu just 24 hours after being named as the number six overall player in the Ballon d’Or list.

Vinicius announced his contract extension at Santiago Bernabeu with a video posted on Real Madrid’s social media page where he expressed his happiness to have signed a contract extension at the club and hoping to continue to win more titles with the Los Blancos.

“Hello Madrid fans, I am very happy to renew my contract. It is a dream for me; I hope I can continue here for many years, scoring many goals and winning many titles. Thank you very much for the love. Hala Madrid!” Vinicius junior said.

Vinicius Junior joined Real Madrid in 2020 in the 39 million pound move from Flamengo in the Brazilian league and has gone on to win two La Liga titles, two Spanish Super Cups, one Copa Del Rey, one UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Super Cup and two FIFA Club World Cups.

On Monday, the 23-year-old was voted sixth in the voting for the men’s Ballon d’Or and was awarded the Socrates Award for his work off the pitch for starting a foundation that is building schools in poor areas and investing in education in Brazil.

Argentina forward Lionel Messi won the men’s Ballon d’Or title, while Vinicius’ Real Madrid teammate, Jude Bellingham, was named the Kopa Trophy winner for the best player under the age of 21.

Jude Bellingham, who joined Real Madrid in the summer from Borussia Dortmund, has scored 13 goals and three assists in 13 UEFA Champions League and La Liga fixtures combined. His latest was a brace in Real Madrid’s 2-1 comeback win against Barcelona in the Clasico on Saturday. Real Madrid will return to action this weekend in the La Liga against Rayo Vallecano on Sunday.

Daniel Ademiju Idowu