Samuel Lino says Prestianni fouls in Benfica friendly unrelated to Vinícius Júnior | OneFootball

Samuel Lino insisted the fouls on Gianluca Prestianni in Benfica v Flamengo were routine and unrelated to Vinícius Júnior.

Flamengo beat Benfica 2-1 in the Troféu do Algarve, Lino opening the scoring late in the first half before tempers flared around Prestianni.

"Playing for Flamengo is like that, it is a hard game. No one has problems with us. The issue with Vinícius has nothing to do with us," he said, speaking to DAZN.

"Obviously he is a special player, but it had nothing to do with it. We were already playing hard, Flamengo are like that."

Vinícius Júnior came through Flamengo and last season accused Prestianni of racially insulting him in Benfica v Real Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League play-off. The Argentine was punished for homophobic insults.

The friendly was heated, with Leonardo Jardim involved in a dispute after confronting a Benfica staff member. He said he is calm and respectful, would not accept disrespect, and called those who flee when confronted cowards.

Jardim also assessed the upcoming Portuguese league, saying it will be a three-way fight with Braga lurking. He hopes for a good, competitive season after Porto won the title, with emotion and without controversies.

Source: Glorioso 1904