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Vinicius Junior was allegedly racially abused during Real Madrid's Champions League clash with Benfica moments after scoring the game's only goal
Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has come out in support of Vinicius Junior following allegations that the Real Madrid attacker suffered racial abuse from Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni.
The Brazilian netted the match's solitary strike during Tuesday evening's Champions League play-off first leg in Portugal. Having bent the ball into the top corner, Vinicius joined his colleagues in celebration near the corner flag and received a yellow card for over-exuberant celebrations.
Moments before Benfica prepared to resume play, Vinicius informed referee Francois Letexier of the alleged incident. The Brazilian forward accused Prestianni, who was observed covering his mouth with his shirt, of making racist remarks before the match was halted for 10 minutes.
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Prestianni has refuted Vinicius' claims, posting on social media: "I want to clarify that at no time did I direct racist insults at the player Vinicius Junior, who unfortunately misinterpreted what he thought he heard.
"I have never been racist and I regret the threats I received from Real Madrid players." Benfica republished his statement alongside the message: "Together, by your side."
Following the events in Portugal, Thierry Henry and Micah Richards examined the situation during CBS Sports' broadcast. "I can relate to what Vinicius is going through," Henry stated whilst delivering a heartfelt address.
"That happened to me so many times on the pitch. I talked about it so many times after games. I've also been accused of looking for excuses after games when that happened to me. At times, you feel lonely, because it's going to be your word against his word.
"We don't know what Prestianni has said, because he was very courageous by putting his shirt over his mouth to make sure that we weren't going to see what he said, so clearly, already, you look suspicious. Because you didn't want people to see or read what you said.
"Then, the reaction of Vinicius is telling me that something not right happened. We still don't know what was said. Vinicus can tell us his side, and Prestianni, I'm sure, will not tell us what he actually said, because I saw at one point Kylian Mbappe confront him, and he said, 'I didn't say anything'.
"Well, he must have said something at the very least. You feel like you don't know what to do anymore. We're in 2026 and still after a game like that, where we're supposed to talk about his brilliant goal, we shouldn't be having to deal with the referee telling you to not go to the corner flag, because that will incite the crowd."
"It's a corner, can he not take a corner? He can't go there to take a corner just because people are thinking whatever they're thinking. Suddenly he becomes a victim. I can relate. I can assure you, when that happens, you don't know what to do anymore.
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"He tried to walk out in Spain one time, and another time, he tried to kick someone back because he'd had enough. Now he went to see the referee to tell him what happened. I've been there. The referee also told me he couldn't do anything about it."
He continued: "Let's see how big of a man Prestianni is," he added. "Tell us what you said. You must have said something, because you can't go to Mbappe and say, 'I didn't say anything'. What do you mean, you covered your nose for what, you have a cold?".
Richards was equally forthright regarding the alleged discrimination Vinicius endured on Tuesday, describing Prestianni as a "coward".
English (US) ·