Vinicius Junior was reportedly subjected to racist abuse during Real Madrid’s 1-0 victory over Benfica in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League playoff in Portugal.
The alleged incident came after Vinicius scored the winning goal — a curling strike into the top corner — and celebrated passionately in front of the home crowd.
Play was suspended for about 10 minutes when Benfica midfielder Gianluca Prestianni approached Vinicius, covered his mouth with his shirt and appeared to make a comment. The exchange sparked angry reactions from Vinicius and teammates, including Kylian Mbappe, who claimed the remark was racist. After the game, Benfica boss Jose Mourinho argued that Vinicius’s celebrations incited the crowd, something that the Brazilian has been accused of in the past.
Speaking to Amazon Prime, Mourinho said, “Yes [he provoked]. I believe so. When you score a goal like that, you celebrate in a respectful way… You should go and celebrate with your teammates, not in the faces of 60,000 people.
“When it happens in so many stadiums, always with the same player, there is something wrong. A stadium where Vinicius plays something happens, always. “I told him [Vinicius]: when you score a goal like that, you just celebrate and walk back… He’s an incredible player; I love him. But if you score like that, you should celebrate respectfully.”