Benfica Denies Prestianni Admitted Racist Insult Towards Vinicius Jr.
Portuguese club Benfica has vehemently denied press reports claiming that its player, Gianluca Prestiani, admitted to his teammates that he directed a racist insult towards Brazilian Real Madrid player Vinicius Junior. The club confirmed in an official statement that the player did not confess to his teammates or management about using any racist language, contrary to recent reports by the Portuguese newspaper "Correio da Manhã".
The incident dates back to the first leg of the Champions League playoff, held on March 17, which saw significant tension after Vinicius Junior initially refused to continue the match following an altercation with Prestiani. In this context, Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé made statements confirming he heard abusive language directed at his teammate. The match concluded with the Spanish club winning by one goal to nil.
Benfica clarified the team's internal position in its official statement, saying: "Benfica categorically denies that player Prestiani informed the squad or the club's structure that he directed a racist insult at Real Madrid player Vinicius Junior." The statement further added regarding the player's apology: "The player apologized to his teammates for the incident that occurred during the match, expressing his regret for its implications and consequences, and assuring everyone, as he has done from the first hour, that he is not a racist." In a related development, reports indicated that the player admitted before UEFA's investigative committees to using a homophobic slur instead of a racist one.
UEFA decided to provisionally suspend Prestiani from the second-leg match at the Santiago Bernabéu, a decision upheld by the appeals bodies after rejecting the Portuguese club's challenge. For his part, the player defended his innocence via social media platforms, describing UEFA's decisions as "shameful," while later justifying his stance in an Instagram statement by saying he misunderstood what he heard at that moment.
