Gianluca Prestianni Denies Racist Insults Toward Vinícius Jr. in Champions League

Argentine Gianluca Prestianni, a Benfica player, denied on Wednesday that he directed racist insults at Real Madrid forward Vinícius Jr. during the first leg of the Champions League playoff round for the Round of 16 in Lisbon.

In a statement on his official Instagram account, Prestianni said: “I want to clarify that at no point did I direct racist insults at Vinícius Jr., who unfortunately misunderstood what he thought he heard. I have never been racist toward anyone.”

He also added: “And I regret the threats I received from Real Madrid players.”

The incident occurred at 51 minutes and 26 seconds, following Vinícius Jr.’s 0-1 goal celebration. The Brazilian forward reported to referee François Letexier that Prestianni had allegedly made racist remarks, which triggered the UEFA anti-racism protocol and paused the match for eight minutes.

Mbappé Demands Maximum UEFA Sanction Against Gianluca Prestianni for Racist Insult to Vinícius Jr.

Frenchman Kylian Mbappé called on UEFA to issue the toughest possible sanction against Argentine Gianluca Prestianni, a Benfica player, following the alleged racist insult to Vinícius Jr. that stopped the Real Madrid vs Benfica match for ten minutes. According to Mbappé, Prestianni called Vinícius a "monkey" up to five times, covering his mouth with his shirt.

“What I saw is very clear: number 25 said five times to Vini that you are a monkey. Everyone can have their opinion, but this kind of behavior is unacceptable. It’s wonderful to play in the Champions League, but showing this image is terrible for world football,” Mbappé said in the mixed zone at Da Luz.

Mbappé added: “I called him racist because I think he is. He tried to hide behind his shirt, but his face doesn’t lie. This type of person is not a professional colleague. A young player cannot have the freedom to say things like this on a football field. It’s a big problem, and we’ll see what happens.”

The French forward acknowledged that Vinícius Jr. is very upset after experiencing this latest episode of racism and praised his performance: “He scored a wonderful goal that gave Real Madrid the victory.”

Mbappé also sent a message to fans: “We have to set an example for all the kids watching us. This behavior cannot be tolerated. I have nothing against Benfica or their coach, but a player like this does not deserve to play in the Champions League again. We hope UEFA will take action and not pretend nothing happened. This is a serious case.”

Despite Real Madrid’s 0-1 victory over Benfica, Mbappé stressed that football was secondary: “We won the match, but that’s not what’s important. There are things much more important than football.”

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