Benfica appeal against UEFA’s provisional suspension for player involved in Vinicius racism incident | OneFootball

Gianluca Prestianni has become one of the biggest antagonists in world football right now following the events of Real Madrid and Benfica’s first-leg clash at Estadio da Luz.

During a confrontation with Vinicius Jr., Prestianni allegedly used a racial slur, calling him a ‘mo*key’, with even Kylian Mbappe being a witness to the incident.

UEFA has taken action by issuing a provisional one-match suspension against the Argentine, meaning he will not be eligible to play the second leg tie against Real Madrid.

Benfica appeal against the ban

However, according to A Bola, Benfica have lodged an appeal against UEFA’s provisional ban for Prestianni.

It appears the club believe the suspension on Prestianni was not warranted, as the player had denied racially abusing Vinicius Jr.

Benfica want Prestianni to play the second leg. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

He did, however, admit to using a homophobic slur against the Real Madrid forward. But even this is quite questionable for a professional.

But Benfica sound confident that Prestianni did not do anything wrong and have, therefore, appealed against the ban.

As a matter of fact, Prestianni will travel to Madrid with the Benfica team in case their appeal is successful and the suspension gets overruled.

It should be noted that if it is proven that Prestianni had called Vinicius a ‘mo*key’, he would face a ban of up to ten matches. Benfica as an institution, though, appear to share no such concerns and are keen on having the Argentine available.

In case Prestianni does feature at the Bernabeu, he would perhaps face the most hostile atmosphere a footballer can possibly experience in this storied football stadium.