Mourinho addresses Prestianni row at Benfica: Vini Jr knows my side | OneFootball

José Mourinho gave his first interview as Real Madrid manager and addressed several topics related to the new challenge. The Portuguese coach spoke about arriving at the club, expectations for this new chapter, and building the squad, making one thing clear: as far as he is concerned, the transfer market is closed. The Portuguese manager also spoke about his relationship with Vinícius Júnior and denied playing a leading role in the renewal of the number 7’s contract with the merengue club.

“No, thanks to me? Vinicius is in love with Real Madrid. I only told him: ‘Vini, where do you want to go? You’ve been in Brazil and in Madrid, you know what Madrid is when you leave, and it’s not worth it’,” Mourinho explained. In the coach’s view, the group’s growth and the feeling of being part of a winning project were decisive in the player’s decision to stay at the Santiago Bernabéu.

The relationship between the two has not always been peaceful. A few months ago, Mourinho and Vinícius had a falling-out after the coach defended Prestianni, the Argentine Benfica player, following an incident of racist abuse in the Champions League.

“The answer is simple, Prestianni was my player. And that’s it, there’s nothing more to discuss. Now Vini knows which side I’m on. The other day, when they didn’t give him a penalty, I was in midfield fighting for him,” he said.

The coach also took the opportunity to defend the Brazilian and criticised the way he is treated on the pitch, especially pointing to the referees’ performances: “People have to learn how to behave with him, and I’m talking about the referees. You can’t give one player a penalty and not Vinicius, protect one and not Vinicius. They don’t respect him,” Mourinho lamented.

Even so, the Portuguese coach offered some advice to the Brazilian winger, especially regarding the way he celebrates goals. “One thing is celebrating a goal with your own people, another is celebrating in front of the opposing fans,” he warned.

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