No Mourinho or Prestianni, the ball stars in Real Madrid v Benfica | OneFootball

Real Madrid hosts Benfica this Wednesday in the second leg of the Champions League play-off (with the Spanish team having won the first leg 1-0), with tensions still high after Vinícius Junior reported allegedly racist insults directed at him by Gianluca Prestianni at Estádio da Luz in Lisbon.

However, the provisional suspension imposed on the Argentine forward by UEFA on Monday, for calling the Brazilian a “monkey,” may ease tensions and bring the focus back to the match—an encounter between two clubs with history in Europe’s top competition, both fighting for a spot in the round of 16.

This is especially relevant considering that José Mourinho, who managed the home team from 2010 to 2013 and is currently Benfica’s coach, will also be absent from the Bernabéu after being sent off in the first leg.

Although a tribute from his former fans has not been ruled out, the 63-year-old coach’s comments—accusing Vini of provoking him with his dance during the celebration of the match’s only goal—were not well received at the ‘casa blanca’.

Mourinho, who won a LaLiga title with Real Madrid during his three years in charge, left a deep mark on the Spanish giant during a period of particularly fierce rivalry with Barcelona.

The admiration of Madrid president Florentino Pérez for the Portuguese coach is well known, and rumors persist that Mourinho could be hired next season to replace Álvaro Arbeloa if the team does not achieve its goals.

“We cannot portray the victim as the provocateur. Nothing he did justifies a racist act,” declared Real Madrid coach Álvaro Arbeloa a few days ago, who describes himself as a big “Mourinhista.”

Scores to Settle

Perhaps to calm tempers and avoid putting Mourinho at the center of attention, Benfica announced on Monday that it would leave the pre-match press conference this Tuesday to his assistant, João Tralhão.

The match will also not feature Vinícius Junior and Prestianni facing each other again after the controversy in the first leg. After scoring the only goal of the match, the Brazilian celebrated with a little dance, to which the Argentine allegedly responded, according to Vini, by calling him a “monkey.”

The controversial Real Madrid winger ran to the referee to report the offense. The referee applied the anti-racism protocol and the match was stopped for fifteen minutes. However, since Prestianni’s guilt could not be proven (he covered his mouth with his shirt), the Argentine was allowed to continue on the field.

Despite everything, both Mourinho and Prestianni traveled to the Spanish capital this Tuesday. The player hopes for an unlikely lifting of the precautionary measure… and with the coach, anything is possible.

“Nothing has been proven. Prestianni is not a racist. Otherwise, he would no longer be a Benfica player,” declared the Lisbon club’s president, Rui Costa, at the airport.

Beyond the off-field factors, Real Madrid and Benfica are two teams with scores to settle and a strong desire to resolve them. This will be their third meeting in less than a month, after the epic match in the last round of the league phase, won by the Portuguese team (4-2) with a header from their goalkeeper in the final moments, and the first leg of the play-off, which Real Madrid won 1-0.

The two clubs faced each other in the final of the 1962 European Cup, the predecessor to the Champions League, with Benfica emerging victorious. However, the Lisbon team has failed to win its last five UEFA knockout ties against Spanish teams.

*With content from AFP

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