MADRID (AP) — Benfica player Gianluca Prestiani has denied racially insulting the Real Madrid forward. Vinicius Jr..
“I have never been racist towards anyone and I regret the threats I received from Real Madrid players,” the 20-year-old Argentina forward told X.
of champions league Tuesday’s playoff match at Benfica’s Stadium of Light was suspended for nearly 10 minutes after the referee initiated anti-racism protocols.
Benfica showed support The Portuguese club sued Mr. Prestiani on Wednesday, claiming that Madrid players who testified they heard the insult were too far away.
Benfica fans were furious that Vinicius celebrated his 50th-minute goal by dancing by the corner flag and throwing bottles and other objects at Madrid players. Prestiani then confronted Vinicius and said something while covering his mouth with his jersey.
Vinicius said he was subjected to racist insults by Prestiani during the match, which Madrid won 1-0. Madrid will host the second leg of Europe’s top club soccer competition on February 25, with the overall winner advancing to the round of 16.
Madrid’s players said they considered leaving the field, but ultimately decided to continue playing.
Benfica posted a video on ‘X’.
“As the image shows, given the distance, there is no way that the Real Madrid players did not hear the words they were hearing,” Benfica said.
Club has already posted Prestiani statement With the words “Together, by your side”.
Prestiani defends
Prestiani claimed that Vinicius had misunderstood what he had said, but Benfica players reportedly said after the match that the Argentine had provoked the Brazilian forward but had never racially insulted him.
“I want to make it clear that I never directly directed any racist insults at Vinicius Junior. Unfortunately, the player misunderstood what he thought he heard,” Prestiani said.
He did not say why he covered his mouth.
The referee didn’t seem to hear anything and motioned for Prestiani to put his shirt over his mouth. Vinicius, who is black and has suffered repeated racist abuse in Spain, returned to the sideline and sat in the dugout during the game’s suspension.
Prestiani was not shown a yellow card and continued playing. He came on as a substitute in the 81st minute and received a standing ovation from the Benfica fans.
Kylian Mbappé was one of the Madrid players who strongly defended Vinicius. Posted in X“Dance, Vini, and never stop. They never tell us what we have to do or what we have to do.”
The French great also said that Prestiani should never play in the Champions League again.
UEFA said in a statement: “The official report from last night’s match is currently under review.”
Mourinho’s reaction
Vinicius was caught on camera telling French referee François Letexier that Prestiani had called him a “monkey”.
Benfica manager Jose Mourinho criticized Vinicius for celebrating with the Benfica flag. He said he spoke to both players and didn’t want to say he believed either of them.
Mourinho told Vinicius that Benfica’s greatest player, Eusebio, is also black, but he seems to have questioned why Madrid players are often the targets of racist abuse.
Vinicius was shown a yellow card after his goal celebration on Tuesday.
Some online videos on Wednesday showed several Benfica fans making monkey-like gestures from the stands.
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