UEFA provisionally suspends Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni over alleged discriminatory behaviour
Sign up now: Get the biggest sports news in your inbox
Benfica's Argentinian winger Gianluca Prestianni hiding his mouth while arguing with Real Madrid's Brazilian forward Vinicius Jr, who complained about alleged racists insults during Real's 1-0 away win in the first leg of their Champions League knockout play-off tie on Feb 17.
PHOTO: AFP
MADRID – UEFA, the European football governing body, on Feb 23 suspended Gianluca Prestianni from the second leg of Benfica’s Champions League knockout play-off against Real Madrid on Feb 25, after he was accused of racially abusing Real’s Vinicius Jr during the first leg on Feb 17.
The suspension is pending the outcome of the ongoing proceedings, as UEFA has appointed an ethics and disciplinary inspector to investigate the allegations of discriminatory behaviour.
“This is without prejudice to any ruling that the UEFA disciplinary bodies may subsequently make following the conclusion of the ongoing investigation and its respective submission to the UEFA disciplinary bodies. Further information about this matter will be made available in due course,” UEFA said in a statement.
The first leg was suspended for 11 minutes shortly after Vinicius curled Real into the lead five minutes into the second half. The match ended 1-0.
Television footage showed Prestianni covering his mouth with his shirt repeatedly before making comments which Vinicius and his nearby teammates interpreted as a racial slur against the 25-year-old.
Referee Francois Letexier halted the match after activating FIFA’s anti-racism protocols. The footage appeared to show Real forward Kylian Mbappe confronting Prestianni and calling him “a bloody racist” while images from the broadcast seemed to show Benfica fans imitating a monkey.
Prestianni denied the allegation and claimed Vinicius “misunderstood what he thinks he heard”, and Benfica said they stood by their player.
Benfica coach Jose Mourinho, who is also suspended for the second leg, controversially criticised the Brazilian for his effusive goal celebration and said his club could not be racist because their greatest icon, Eusebio, was black.
Anti-discrimination body Kick It Out said focusing on Vinicius’ goal celebration instead of acknowledging the alleged racist abuse was a “form of gaslighting”.
Meanwhile, Cristian Chivu said on Feb 23 that his Inter Milan team can turn around a two-goal deficit against Bodo/Glimt and reach the last 16 of the Champions League.
Inter lost 3-1 in Norway on Feb 18 and risk joining reigning Italian champions Napoli in being eliminated from Europe’s elite club competition.
“We don’t have any obligations, only a duty. All we need to do is go out on the pitch and do what we know we can do,” Chivu told reporters ahead of the clash at the San Siro on Feb 24.
“We have to go out there knowing that if there’s a team to turn this around, it’s us... We can’t lose faith in ourselves or our self-confidence.
“We need to be the best version of ourselves.”
Bodo have had a remarkable debut campaign in the Champions League, sneaking into the knockout stage with shock victories over England’s Manchester City and Spain’s Atletico Madrid in their final two league-phase matches.
Midfielder Patrick Berg told UEFA’s website: “As players, we almost feel like we’re living in a dream. It’s something we’ll look back on in many years and probably think it was a bit surreal...
“We feel we can compete with most teams, but at the same time we have nothing to lose.”
AFP, REUTERS
