Vinicius Junior on Tuesday scored a sensational goal to earn Real Madrid a 1-0 UEFA Champions League playoff first-leg victory at SL Benfica in a match marred by apparent racist abuse aimed at the Brazilian.
Having curled a stunning shot into the top corner in the 50th minute, Vinicius argued with Gianluca Prestianni, after which he complained to French referee Francois Letexier, who halted the match for more than 10 minutes as he applied the racism protocol.
Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni said Vinicius told his teammates that Prestianni called him a “monkey.”
Photo: Reuters
“Vini is doing good, calm,” Real Madrid head coach Alvaro Arbeloa told Movistar. “[What happened] is something that nobody likes, you have to ask the Benfica player what he said. [Racism] is something we have to eradicate from the world of football and if the players don’t fix it then this is very complicated.”
Benfica head coach Jose Mourinho was sent off in the final stages of a spiky game for complaining too vociferously, meaning he misses the second leg against his former team at the Santiago Bernabeu next week.
Arbeloa’s Madrid earned a narrow and nervy victory at the Estadio da Luz in Lisbon to take an advantage into that clash, as well as avenging their dramatic 4-2 defeat by Benfica in the league phase.
That collapse dragged the record 15-time champions down into the playoff round, while helping Mourinho’s side reach it by the skin of their teeth.
However, this was a far different affair, with Arbeloa’s Madrid much sturdier than a few weeks ago.
They were bolstered by French superstar Kylian Mbappe’s return after he sat out of their last game because of knee discomfort.
Vinicius, back to his vibrant best since Arbeloa replaced Xabi Alonso at the helm last month, dragged the first good chance of the game just wide of the far post.
Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made a fine save to keep out Fredrik Aursnes’ deflected effort from distance as Benfica held their own.
Madrid’s quality began to shine through before halftime, with Benfica goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin, who scored a stunning late goal when the teams met last month, denying Mbappe and Arda Guler.
The Ukrainian stopper could do nothing, though, about Vinicius’ sensational strike after 50 minutes.
On the left of the penalty area, with nothing else on, Vinicius curled a sumptuous effort into the top corner to put Madrid ahead.
The Brazilian was booked for his dancing celebration in front of Benfica’s supporters.
That sparked an exchange with Prestianni, who pulled his shirt over his mouth before seeming to say something to Vinicius.
The Brazilian then ran over to Letexier and, pointing at Prestianni, said that he had been called mono, the Spanish word for monkey.
“Vini told us that the guy called him a ‘monkey’ with his shirt [raised over his mouth],” Tchouameni told Movistar.
The official activated the racism protocol, and Vinicius sat in Madrid’s dug-out, with the game on hold for several minutes.
When the game eventually resumed, Vinicius was jeered by Benfica supporters, and three times denied by Trubin in the minutes that followed.
Mourinho was sent off in the 85th minute as he appealed for a second yellow card for Vinicius, costing him a spot on the bench back at his old hunting ground, where he led Madrid between 2010 and 2013.
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