Keep YouTube Vanced playing in the background when closing the mini-player

I'm using YouTube Vanced. When I close the picture-in-picture by tapping the "×" of the mini-player, the video stops and I have to click the play button in notifications to continue playing it in the background. How can I make the video automatically continue seamlessly in the background? **Environment** - Android version: 9 - YouTube Vanced version: 16.29.39-Builds-01.54.00