Vinicius Jr hinted again that he was racially abused by Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni on Tuesday night.
Real Madrid’s Champions League clash with Benfica was halted after Vinicius Jr made the allegation just moments after scoring the only goal of the game.
The match was paused in the second half as the Brazilian forward refused to continue after his goal.
Vinicius Jr had put Real Madrid ahead five minutes into the second half of their knockout round tie.
But his celebration quickly led to tense moments at the Estadio da Luz in Lisbon.
The referee, Francois Letexier, initially booked Vinicius Jr for provoking the home fans as he celebrated at the corner flag.
Vinicius Jr then approached the referee to report racial abuse, pointing at Prestianni, before walking off the pitch.
His decision followed UEFA’s protocol for players who face racial abuse during a match.
While Vinicius Jr sat in the dugout, the game was stopped for about ten minutes.
After the break, he returned to the field, though he remained visibly upset and was booed by Benfica fans whenever he got the ball.
The 45-cap Brazil international released a statement after the match condemning racism and questioning how protocols were handled.
He also suggested that Prestianni used a racial slur, implying the Argentine spoke under his shirt while covering his mouth.
“Racists are, above all, cowards. They need to put their shirts in their mouths to show how weak they are,” Vinicius Jr said.
“But they have the protection of others who, theoretically, have an obligation to punish them.”
“Nothing that happened today is new in my life or in my team’s life. I received a yellow card for celebrating a goal. I still don’t understand why.
“On the other hand, it was just a poorly executed protocol that served no purpose.”
“I don’t like to appear in situations like this, especially after a big win and when the headlines should be about Real Madrid, but it’s necessary.”
Gianluca Prestianni also addressed the incident on Instagram early Wednesday, denying the claim of racial abuse.
“I want to clarify that at no time did I direct racist insults to Vini Jr, who regrettably misunderstood what he thought he heard,” Prestianni wrote.
“I was never racist with anyone and I regret the threats I received from Real Madrid players.”
