Vini Jr.’s goal celebration that secured Real Madrid’s win against Benfica was a significant point of discussion for the Portuguese coach following the match at Estádio da Luz.
Mourinho, who had a tense exchange with the Brazilian player, refrained from commenting on the alleged racist incident involving Prestianni.
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“What Vinícius says is one thing, and what Prestianni says is entirely different. I strive for balance and don’t want to claim that Vinícius is lying and Prestianni is innocent.”
According to him, Real’s number 7 “ended the game” with his celebration near a corner flag, which was directed toward Benfica supporters.
“I told Vinícius that when you score a goal like that, you should be celebrated (by your teammates). You shouldn’t taunt the stadium or the opposing team’s fans. As they say in Spain, whoever scores a goal like that diminishes the competition, and he did just that.“
“I mentioned to Vinícius that he scored an extraordinary goal, so why didn’t he celebrate like one of the greatest, like Di Stéfano, Pelé, or Eusébio? Why not express the joy that comes with scoring? It’s always the same problem with him (Vini Jr.). That’s something I just can’t understand.“
Vini vents after reporting yet another case of racism: ‘Still don’t understand’
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Mbappé comes to Vini’s defense and details racism complaint
Mourinho ended up being sent off after expressing dissatisfaction over the lack of a second yellow card for Vini following a foul on Richard Ríos.
📸 PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA – AFP or licensors
With Mourinho suspended, Benfica will head to the Bernabéu next Wednesday (the 25th) with the challenge of winning by two goals to advance in regular time.
The team that comes out on top in this match will face either Sporting or Manchester City in the round of 16.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.