Thibaut Courtois took to the stage ahead of the match against Benfica to analyze the sporting situation with a focus on Gianluca Prestiani. Eight of the 11 questions asked by the press concerned the fight against racism, but the Belgian goalkeeper did not shy away from any of them. It was another lesson from the world’s best goalkeeper, but this time in a press conference.
Benfica: “The most important thing is that the fans are with us and support us throughout the game and that we get a good start from the first second of the game. Results are misleading, if they score it will be a tie. We have to start well, play well, concentrate and have the right attitude. If we do that, we will win.”
Prestiani’s suspension: “We are at the perfect moment for football to put an end to this situation. We in the dressing room know what Vinicius said. We don’t want to personalize it. It happens in many moments in football, not only on the pitch but also in the stadium. Ultimately it is UEFA’s decision and this is a good message.”
Have you ever been disappointed in Mourinho?: “At the end of the day, Mourinho is Mourinho and as a manager you protect your club and your players. The only thing that disappoints me is that he takes advantage of Vini’s celebrations. He has done nothing wrong. Many opponents have done the same thing against us, but when they score a goal, they celebrate like that. We cannot justify alleged racist acts with celebrations.”
Chilabale said: “That’s too bad. You shouldn’t say things like that. It’s a different kind of insult. It doesn’t apply in today’s world or anywhere else. Especially not coming from another former professional colleague.”
Is just invoking the protocol enough? : “They are getting better and better. In the end, the problem is that at that moment it is Vinicius who decides that we will play again, because if Vinicius says no, we will think about sending off. And it will be up to the head of UEFA to decide how the match will go. And then…what happens in the stands is to stop the game and get those people out. But of course it’s not normal for football players to see what’s going on in the stands. That’s the job of the match officials.” And then they should call the authorities. As a society, we have to stop being so stupid. ”
Rui Costa said: “Using the Valverde incident has nothing to do with it. They happened during the match. I don’t think Valverde meant to hit the opponent. If you want to separate someone, you push him or take his hand away. It’s difficult with Prestianni. In the end it will be a conflict of words. They will believe what the players say, and we are cooperating 100 percent with Vini.”
Vinicius: “Vini has been kicked thousands of times by defenders on the pitch and has had arguments with players, but he has never said anything like that. I know that Vini hears it 100 percent and he has said it many times. “I believe in Vini. We will never know because he covered his mouth with his shirt. Benfica will protect the player and that’s it. UEFA and the organization will decide after that.”
Will the Real Madrid players greet Prestiani if he plays?: “We haven’t discussed it with the players and we’ll see what we decide as a team.”
Benfica image and homophobic insults: “I saw footage of Benfica fans during the match, and it’s deplorable to see that in the stadium, because players may like it more or less, but it’s a shame to make a gesture like that. I don’t know if they condemned it, but I don’t think they paid too much attention to it. I haven’t looked intently. I haven’t seen if they said they would go after the people who made that gesture. Of all the things that happened, there are a lot of things that are unacceptable, both racist and homophobic, and we can imagine that he would have said that if he didn’t cover his mouth.”
