Vinicius Junior scored a stunning second-half winning goal as Real Madrid beat Benfica 1-0 in the Champions League play-off first leg, but the night was overshadowed by the Brazilian accusing Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni of hurling a racist slur at him.
The alleged incident occurred on Tuesday at the Estadio da Luz five minutes into the second half, just after Vinicius put Real ahead, before referee François Letexier halted the match for 11 minutes under FIFA’s anti-racism regulations.
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Television footage showed the Argentine winger covering his mouth with his shirt and making comments that Vinicius and nearby teammates interpreted as a racial slur against the 25-year-old, who has repeatedly been subjected to racial abuse during matches in Spain.
Real captain Federico Valverde told Movistar Plus: “It’s unbelievable that no one caught[Prestiani’s]racial slur when there were dozens of cameras in the stadium, but if he covered his mouth to say something, that says a lot.”
“My close team-mates say they have heard some very terrible things. Many people have fought against racism in football, and Vinicius is one of them. I am proud of him and his great game.”
The Associated Press reported that television cameras caught Vinicius Junior telling the referee that Prestiani had called him a “monkey”.
Benfica started the match in the ascendant, but while the home side looked content to fight back, the visitors gradually took control, with goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois making a superb one-handed save to deny Fredrik Olsnes’ shot in the 25th minute.
Real finished the first half well, with only goalkeeper Anatoly Turbin making a brilliant save to deny Kylian Mbappé and Arda Güler, keeping them scoreless in the final minutes of the first half.
The breakthrough came five minutes after the restart. Mbappe rushed forward and fed Vinicius on the left. The Brazilian cut diagonally towards the box, shifted inside and fired an unstoppable curling shot into the top corner.
Vinicius celebrated by dancing with the corner flag, but was warned by L’Etexier for excessive celebration.
While the forward was arguing with the referee, he was involved in a heated exchange with Prestiani, and Vinicius and several teammates suddenly ran towards the referee.
Letexier crossed his arms in front of his face and activated FIFA protocols to stop the match. As tensions escalated, Real players threatened to be sent off the pitch, but the match was eventually restarted 11 minutes later.
The atmosphere was tense, with loud boos erupting every time Vinicius touched the ball, and after the match restarted, broadcast cameras showed an enraged Mbappé repeatedly calling Prestiani a “bloody racist” to his face.
Tensions rose again in the 85th minute when Vinicius committed a foul on Richard Ríos. Benfica manager Jose Mourinho lunged at the fourth official and demanded a second booking for the Brazilian, but was booked himself for protesting.
Mourinho was furious and continued to reprimand him, but was soon shown a second yellow card.
Benfica made a late attack, but managed just three shots on target, securing a slight advantage for Real to take back to Madrid in the match.
Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa has condemned the abuse allegations against Vinicius Junior.
“I think everyone knows what happened to Prestiani,” he said.
“We have to fight against this attitude,” Arbeloa added. “If we don’t respect each other, that’s a problem.”
Madrid right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold told Amazon Prime that the alleged incident during the match was a “disgrace to football” and overshadowed his performance and great goal.
“Vini has been victimized by this several times throughout his career,” he said. “It’s a disgrace to ruin a night like this for our team. There’s no place for that in football or society. It’s disgusting.”
Mourinho criticized Vinicius Junior’s celebrations and defended the club, if not Prestiani, against allegations of racism.
“Words have been exchanged. I want to be independent. I don’t want to say that I believe in Prestiani or that I believe in Vinicius,” he said.
“I said (to Vinicius): ‘When you score a goal like that, just celebrate with respect.’ When he was discussing racism, I told him that the greatest person in the history of this club (Eusebio) is black. This club is not racist.”
Galatasaray beat Juve 5-2
In another match on Tuesday, Dutch midfielder Noah Lang scored twice as Galatasaray defeated Juventus 5-2 in the first leg of the Champions League playoffs in Istanbul.
In a tense atmosphere, Juventus, coached by Luciano Spalletti, actually led 2-1 at half-time as Teun Koopmeiners answered Brazilian midfielder Gabriel Sala’s opening goal with two goals of his own.
However, a brace from Lang and goals from Davinson Sanchez and Sacha Boi sank Juventus in a disastrous second half for the Italian side, with Colombian full-back Juan Cabal sent off with two cautions.
Meanwhile, Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain overcame a poor start and a two-goal deficit to defeat 10-a-side Monaco 3-2 away in the first leg of their playoff tie.
Desiree Douai came on from the bench and was instrumental in PSG’s impressive comeback. PSG conceded an early goal, and 18 minutes later Folarin Balogun doubled for the home side, making them 2-0 down.
The 20-year-old Douai came on in the 27th minute to replace Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, who was forced off with an injury, and played a crucial role for the visitors, scoring two superb goals and setting up Achraf Hakimi’s goal.
In Germany, host Borussia Dortmund beat Italian visitors Atalanta 2-0 in the first leg of the Champions League play-offs on Tuesday, with striker Selhou Ghirassy scoring one goal and scoring another.
