Player accused of racism against Vini Jr set to face Flamengo Saturday

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Coluna do Fla

·11 juillet 2026

Player accused of racism against Vini Jr set to face Flamengo Saturday

What is the situation surrounding Prestiani, Benfica (POR) player, ahead of the match against Flamengo?

Flamengo wraps up its mid-season break in Portugal with a match against Benfica (POR) this Saturday (11). In the clash, which takes place at 3:30 p.m. Brasília time at Estádio Algarve, the Rubro-Negro could come face to face with Gianluca Prestianni, the Portuguese team player accused of racism against Vini Jr.

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Vidéos OneFootball

Prestianni was involved in regrettable scenes in the match between Benfica and Real Madrid (ESP), valid for the first leg of the Champions League playoffs, in April this year. On that occasion, Vini Jr scored a stunning goal, and the forward’s celebration became the target of outrage from fans and players of the Portuguese team.

It was at that moment that Vini Jr accused Prestianni of racial abuse and reported it to referee Benoit Bastien. Anti-racism protocol was then activated, and as a result, the match was stopped for about ten minutes. However, despite all the complaints from the Real Madrid forward, the Argentine attacker was not sent off.

WHAT HAPPENED TO PRESTIANNI AFTER THE BENFICA VS REAL MADRID MATCH?

It is important to note that even though he was not sent off, Prestianni received a severe punishment from FIFA. In the ruling, issued in May, world football’s governing body handed the player a six-match suspension. Because of that decision, the forward was ultimately left out of Argentina’s final squad for the 2026 World Cup.

WILL PRESTIANNI PLAY IN FLAMENGO VS BENFICA DURING THE MID-SEASON BREAK IN PORTUGAL?

Based on Benfica’s latest training activity, Prestianni trained among the Portuguese team’s starters. As such, the expectation is that the player will start against Flamengo this Saturday (11).

HAS ANY FLAMENGO PLAYER ALREADY SUFFERED RACISM DURING THE MID-SEASON BREAK IN PORTUGAL?

In short, during the mid-season period in Portugal, Bruno Henrique was the victim of racism from River Plate (ARG) fans. After he scored and celebrated, some supporters of the Argentine side made “monkey” gestures at Mengão’s number 27.

Because of this situation, Flamengo released an official statement shortly after the match against River Plate and said it will take all appropriate measures to combat racism. Finally, Mengão also expressed its full solidarity with forward Bruno Henrique.

WHEN DOES THE FLAMENGO VS BENFICA MATCH TAKE PLACE DURING THE MID-SEASON BREAK IN PORTUGAL?

The match between Flamengo and Benfica takes place this Saturday (11), at 3:30 p.m. Brasília time, with the Algarve Tournament trophy on the line. In this way, Coluna do Fla TV, with on-site coverage from Rock Hudson and Simon Lédo, will show all the details of the match on YouTube, as well as on the website and social media.

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