Jose Mourinho has told his Benfica players that he will not tolerate any talk about Real Madrid or the racist spate involving Vinicius Junior, who remains in the headlines.
Jose Mourinho accuses Vinicius Junior of instigating reaction from Benfica players
Manager Jose Mourinho has banned all talk of Real Madrid within Benfica’s squad following racism allegations that marred the first leg of their Champions League clash.
UEFA has launched an investigation after Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni was accused by Real’s Vinicius Junior of using a racial slur. Mr. Prestiani denies the charges.
Vinicius claims he was called a “monkey” by the Argentine player, who is supported by teammate Kylian Mbappe. Prestiani said his opponent “misunderstood what he thought he heard”, but there is now a lot of attention on the incident and Portugal’s attire.
The two teams will meet again at the Bernabéu next week, with Real leading 1-0, but the Special One has ordered his players not to pay attention to Los Blancos. The Daily Mail reports that the former Chelsea manager has told his players to focus solely on the next game against bottom side AVS in the Primeira Liga. He will not tolerate any discussion of the Madrid draw or any issues related to it.
Mourinho himself caused controversy when he claimed that Vinicius’ celebrations helped create a situation that led to allegations of racism.
read more: UEFA investigates as Benfica star receives 10-match ban following Vinicius Junior’s racism claimsread more: Pundits criticize Vinicius Junior’s comments, accusing Jose Mourinho of justifying racism
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The Portuguese manager was accused of “gaslighting” Vinicius Junior by anti-racism charity Kick It Out, who claimed the player’s over-enthusiastic celebrations caused a backlash from players and spectators.
“It should have been a crazy moment of the game, a great goal in a good game… These talented players can do great things, but unfortunately he (Vinicius) was not just happy to score that amazing goal, and that was the end of the game. When you score a goal like that, you celebrate with respect.”
Brazilian accuses Gianluca Prestiani of racist remarks (Image: Getty Images)
Asked whether the Brazilian had “incited” Benfica players or fans, he replied: “Yes, I think so. The words they exchanged, Prestiani and Vinicius, I want to be independent. I will not comment on that.”
On Thursday, the Spanish giants confirmed they had given their full support to a player accused of racist abuse throughout his time at Los Blancos and had sent “all available evidence” in the case to UEFA.
The incident in Lisbon was the 20th time Vinicius has claimed to have been the subject of abuse during his eight years at Real Madrid.
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