Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink slams Benfica’s Portuguese star: What a hypocrite | OneFootball

It has once again become the center of the debate on racism in football, after the alleged insults by Gianluca Prestianni towards Vinícius Júnior. The way the coach of Benfica publicly reacted to the case was criticized by Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, former striker and current assistant coach of the Suriname national team.

“But what is he talking about? What a huge hypocrite. Unbelievable. He should have gone to speak with his player and asked him directly: 'What did you say?' And then, if he says he did not utter any racist insult, say: ‘Ok, I spoke with the player, this is what he said. But if there were racist insults, he must be punished,’” he told the English newspaper 'The Guardian'.

The now commentator recalls that situations of racism leave deep scars. During his time at Atlético Madrid, Hasselbaink recounted that he was spat on outside the stadium: “It makes you feel worthless. It makes you feel like you’re a piece of s.... Everyone just moved on. The issue was barely discussed. People saw it. What can you do when you’re alone?”

It was said: “He must have said something controversial, otherwise why would he cover his mouth? He wouldn’t cover it to say 'Vinícius, you’re a magnificent player, absolutely fantastic, can I have your shirt?'”.

The former striker emphasized that José Mourinho has an added responsibility: “Mourinho has black players playing in Benfica’s team. How do you think they must feel? It’s as if we always have to start all over again, this never ends.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.