{"id":23994,"date":"2026-02-23T22:12:36","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T22:12:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2026\/02\/23\/jose-mourinho-criticized-by-former-player-for-defending-gianluca-prestiani-over-vinicius-juniors-racism-allegations\/"},"modified":"2026-02-23T22:12:36","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T22:12:36","slug":"jose-mourinho-criticized-by-former-player-for-defending-gianluca-prestiani-over-vinicius-juniors-racism-allegations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2026\/02\/23\/jose-mourinho-criticized-by-former-player-for-defending-gianluca-prestiani-over-vinicius-juniors-racism-allegations\/","title":{"rendered":"Jose Mourinho criticized by former player for defending Gianluca Prestiani over Vinicius Junior’s racism allegations"},"content":{"rendered":"
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F<\/span>Former Chelsea midfielder John Mikel Obi has publicly criticized his former manager Jose Mourinho, claiming that Jose Mourinho will know he has “failed” following his handling of the allegations regarding Vinicius Junior and Gianluca Prestiani. The controversy erupted during Real Madrid’s Champions League play-off first leg against Benfica when Vinicius Junior accused Prestiani of calling him a “monkey”.<\/p>\n
Mr Prestiani said he pulled up his shirt to cover his face during the incident, a claim he denies. <\/p>\n
However, European football governing body UEFA confirmed on Monday that the Argentine winger had been handed a provisional one-match suspension, making him unable to take part in the second leg, pending an investigation.<\/p>\n
Immediately after the match, Mourinho, now in charge of Benfica, faced backlash for comments that many felt shifted the focus to Vini Junior’s actions rather than addressing the seriousness of the racism allegations.<\/p>\n
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Vini Junior’s unexpected behavior with young fans melts the hearts of Real Madrid fans<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
“When you score a goal like that, you celebrate with respect,” Mourinho said after the match.<\/p>\n
When asked if he thought Vini Junior incited the crowd, he replied: “Yes, I think so. The words they exchanged, Prestiani and Vinicius, I want to be independent. I won’t comment on that.”<\/p>\n
“When he was discussing racism, I told him that the greatest person in the history of this club is a black man (Eusebio). This club is absolutely not racist. So if in his mind that is what it is associated with, this is Benfica.”<\/p>\n
“Something goes wrong because it happens in every stadium. In every stadium where Vinicius plays, something happens. It always does.”<\/p>\n
Asked again about the celebrations afterwards, Benfica added: “Yes, I believe so. The words they exchanged, Prestiani and Vinicius, I want to be independent. I won’t comment on that.”<\/p>\n
Mikel expects Mourinho to apologize<\/h2>\n
Obi, who played under Mourinho during his two seasons at Chelsea, told his Obi One podcast that the comment was a grave mistake.<\/p>\n
“What I expected to hear from my old bosses and people in charge was, ‘Yes, we’re investigating, but there’s no room for racism in it, there’s no room for things like that. But let’s wait until the conclusion is out, there’s no room for that,'” the Nigerian cult hero said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo for him to come out and say, “Oh yeah, Vini Junior shouldn’t have celebrated the way he did” was a clumsy, clumsy comment from Jose Mourinho.<\/p>\n
“He’s going to be the first one, he knows, he’s going to be the first one to know, ‘I’m screwed up here.’ He’s a smart, smart guy, a very smart guy, he knows.”<\/p>\n
Mikel added that he expects his former manager to speak publicly about the matter, saying: “I don’t know why he hasn’t apologized, but I hope he will come out and make a statement at some point.”<\/p>\n
“Having played with Jose Mourinho, I don’t have anyone who has said anything bad about him, especially regarding racism, absolutely zero.<\/p>\n
“He’ll be the first to say, ‘I messed up, it was after the game, I was emotional, I wasn’t thinking about what I was saying, I wasn’t thinking about what I was going to say.’<\/p>\n
“He’s an experienced manager, he’s a smart guy, he knows what to say. What he says is a big, big, big mistake.”<\/p>\n
Mourinho takes tough measures against Benfica<\/h2>\n
Since the scandal, Mourinho has reportedly banned any mention of Real Madrid within Benfica’s squad, as attention has focused on domestic duties. <\/p>\n
After the team’s 3-0 win over the AVS over the weekend, he did not elaborate on the criticism.<\/p>\n
“I don’t want to comment. Again, I think it was difficult for everyone. I won’t specify the difficulty level. Everyone was able to work professionally today.”<\/p>\n
With Mourinho suspended following last week’s red card and an investigation ongoing, the spotlight remains firmly on both the Champions League draw and the broader issue of racism in European football.<\/p>\n
However, Mourinho will come under increasing pressure to rectify the situation, with pressure coming from a number of big names and Obi’s closest allies in this match.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n