PORTUGAL – UEFA has announced that it would “investigate allegations of discriminatory behaviour” after Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior accused Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni of racially abusing him during a Champions League match in Lisbon, Portugal.
According to AFP, yesterday’s first leg of the knockout phase play-off tie was stopped for more than 10 minutes after Vinicius complained to French referee François Letexier about the alleged abuse following a confrontation between him and Prestianni.
The article stated that this came just moments after Brazilian international Vinicius scored a sublime goal before picking up a yellow card after celebrating in front of the Benfica crowd at the Estádio da Luz.
After arguing with Prestianni, Vinicius ran over to the referee and told him that he had [allegedly] been called “mono”, the Spanish word for monkey, by the Argentine midfielder.
“The 20-year-old Prestianni, who covered his mouth with his shirt as he appeared to say something to Vinicius, denies racially abusing the Real Madrid star,” the article said.
Real Madrid’s England full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold said the incident had left a sour taste in his mouth.
“It’s disgusting. What’s happened tonight is a disgrace for football. It’s ruined the night for the team,” he said.
Madrid’s talisman Kylian Mbappé called on Prestianni to be banned.
“We cannot accept there’s a player playing in Europe’s best competition and behaving like this,” the France captain told reporters. “This guy doesn’t deserve to play in the Champions League again.”
Benfica coach José Mourinho hit out at Vinicius for inciting Benfica’s players and fans with his goal celebration.
“When you score a goal like that, you celebrate in a respectful way,” Mourinho concluded.
