Gianluca Prestianni has reportedly informed UEFA that he directed a homophobic slur at Vinicius Junior rather than a racist comment during Benfica's Champions League match against Real Madrid. European football's governing body is currently investigating allegations of discriminatory behaviour following claims that Prestianni called the Real Madrid winger a 'monkey' while covering his face during the tense tie on Tuesday.
Match Halted Amid Allegations
The match was halted for ten minutes by referee Francois Letexier, who made a crossed arms gesture to signal reported racial abuse inside Lisbon's Estadio de Luz. Madrid star Kylian Mbappe claimed that Prestianni racially abused his teammate five times, but the Argentinian midfielder has insisted that Vinicius 'misinterpreted what he thinks he heard'.
Evidence Submitted to UEFA
According to ESPN, the Benfica midfielder has now given evidence to the investigation, telling UEFA chiefs that he did not say 'mono' - Spanish for 'monkey' - but instead directed a homophobic slur towards Vinicius. Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni also told reporters that the Benfica player had claimed to have used a homophobic slur in the immediate aftermath of the match.
Real Madrid's Strong Response
The two sides will meet again on Wednesday when Benfica travel to the Santiago Bernabeu looking to overturn a 1-0 deficit from the first leg, thanks to Vinicius's goal. Madrid first play Osasuna in a La Liga match on Saturday evening, but manager Alvaro Arbeloa's pre-match press conference was dominated by questions surrounding the alleged abuse.
'Vinicius is sad, like all of us, and very indignant about what happened because, evidently, it was a racist act, which we don't want to happen again,' Arbeloa stated emphatically. 'An act that has no place in our sport or in our society. We have a huge opportunity not to let this go unpunished and to fight against this scourge that is racism.'
Call for Punishment
The Madrid boss, who took over from Xabi Alonso just last month, also encouraged UEFA to 'punish' Prestianni. 'It's in UEFA's hands,' he declared. 'They were the first to fight this battle many years ago, it's a great opportunity for them to show that this fight is not just words, to take action and punish, to ensure that acts like those that happened in that game do not happen again.'
The Spanish club confirmed on Thursday that it had sent 'all available evidence' to UEFA regarding the case, fully backing their Brazilian star. Meanwhile, as exclusively revealed by Daily Mail Sport this week, Jose Mourinho has banned all mention of Real Madrid among his Benfica squad following the allegations of racism.
Mourinho's Controversial Stance
We understand Mourinho has ordered his players to focus solely on their forthcoming Primeira Liga fixture against AVS, and has made clear he will tolerate no discussion of the Madrid tie or any issues relating to it, such as the Vinicius-Prestianni controversy. Prestianni will not feature in the AVS fixture as he serves a one-match domestic suspension after collecting five bookings.
Mourinho came under fire last week by some quarters for suggesting Vinicius had incited his players after celebrating his goal by dancing at the corner flag. 'Unfortunately (Vinicius) was not just happy to score that astonishing goal and then the game was over. When you score a goal like that you celebrate in a respectful way,' Mourinho told Amazon Prime Sport after the game.
Kompany Criticises Mourinho
When asked if Vinicius had 'incited' Benfica's players and fans with his exuberant celebration, Mourinho said: 'Yeah, I believe so. The words they exchange, Prestianni with Vinicius, I want to be independent. I don't comment about it.' He added: 'There is something wrong because it happens in every stadium. Every stadium that Vinicius plays (in) something happens. Always.'
Bayern Munich boss Vincent Kompany said Mourinho made a 'huge mistake' with his comments. 'You have the leader of an organisation, Jose Mourinho, who attacks the character of Vinicius Jr by bringing in the type of celebration to discredit what Vinicius is doing in this moment,' Kompany asserted. 'In terms of leadership, it's a huge mistake and something we should not accept.'
Kompany continued: 'I met 100 people who worked with Jose Mourinho. I've never heard a person say anything bad about Jose. All his players that played with him, they love him. I understand the person he is. I understand he is fighting for his team, for his club and he's made that decision.'
Arbeloa Defends Vinicius
'You cannot be a bad person and have all the ex-players you've had talk so positively about you. I know he's a good person. I don't need to judge him as a person but I also know what I've heard and I understand maybe what he's done, but he made a mistake,' Kompany concluded. 'Hopefully it won't happen again in the future, and we can move forward and grow and look at the things that we can do together rather than things that constantly separate us.'
Arbeloa was asked about both managers' comments, and said: 'I don't really like it and I'm not here to comment on Kompany's or Jose's reflections. Everyone is free to give their opinion. I'm here to give mine. He scored a great goal and celebrated like we've seen hundreds of players throughout history.'
'Let's not turn the victim into a provocateur. I think that would be unjustifiable, and I believe that nothing Vinicius did justifies a racist act,' Arbeloa added firmly, defending his player against any suggestion that his celebration warranted discriminatory abuse.
