Vinicius Junior and Jose Mourinho (Photo by Angel Martinez, Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Benfica have issued a new statement following allegations of racist abuse against Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior during last night’s match.
Vinicius accused Benfica’s Gianluca Prestiani of racism, which was backed up by Real Madrid teammate Kylian Mbappé.
Benfica still defends its players and insists it is not a club that supports racism or discrimination of any kind.
Yet, at this point, the Portuguese giants appear to be digging an even deeper hole when they should be apologizing and taking appropriate action.
Benfica statement regarding Gianluca Prestiani
According to BBC Sport, Benfica’s latest statement is as follows:
“Sport Lisboa and Benfica accept the measures announced today by UEFA in the spirit of full cooperation, transparency, openness and clarity following the allegations of racism that occurred in the match against Real Madrid.
“The Club clearly and unequivocally reaffirms its historic and unwavering commitment to upholding the values of equality, respect and inclusion. These values are in line with the core values on which the Club was founded and of which Eusebio is its greatest symbol.”
“Sport Lisboa e Benfica reiterates that it fully supports and believes in the version presented by Gianluca Prestiani. His actions during his time at the club have always been based on respect for the opponents, the organization and the principles that define Benfica’s identity. The club deplores the defamation campaign against which the player has been subjected.”
Pundits continue to criticize Jose Mourinho
Benfica manager Jose Mourinho has personally received a lot of negative press for the way he handled the situation.
The former Chelsea and Manchester United manager criticized the players’ celebrations as provocative and was clearly trying to shift the blame onto Vinicius himself.
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has accused Mourinho of being a hypocrite, as Mourinho himself is someone who likes to involve opposition fans, while ex-Tottenham midfielder Jamie O’Hara has slammed Mourinho’s comments on Sky Sports, calling them “disgusting”.
O’Hara said: “What Jose Mourinho has come out and said is disgusting. The comments are disgraceful and they really are. He attacked him to celebrate a goal. He scored a great goal that we should all be talking about.”
“His celebration is totally fine. He’s enjoying the moment. He gets warned by the referee for celebrating, which is equally disgraceful in my opinion, and then he gets taunted.”
“Then he had to go to the referee and say that I was abused, and I think it’s outrageous and completely unfair for Jose Mourinho to come out and say it’s his fault.
“I cannot say that he caused it because he is the one who is being targeted. I think Mourinho will regret what he said. I think he made a big mistake and questioning Vinicius Junior is out of order.”
