Benfica assistant João Tralhão avoided commenting on the suspension of striker Gianluca Prestianni before the second leg of the Champions League playoff against Real Madrid, on Wednesday (25).
According to him, the team’s identity is not linked to a specific athlete.
Prestianni received one from UEFA on Monday. He was accused of directing a racist insult against Vinicius Jr during Real Madrid’s 1-0 first-leg victory in Lisbon last week.
The 20-year-old Argentine denied the accusation and stated that Vinicius “misunderstood what he thought he heard”. Real Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni said Prestianni admitted to making a homophobic comment.
“We are not going to talk about the topic you asked about,” Tralhão said at a press conference on Tuesday.
“What we can say is that, regardless of the player on the field, we have an identity — a clear identity… whether athlete A or athlete B play, we maintain the same profile.”
Courtois’ comment
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois earlier on Tuesday and stated that any type of insult is “just as serious”.
He also criticized Benfica fans for what they did in the first game, classifying the behavior as “deplorable” and “shameful”, in addition to arguing that Vinicius’ goal celebration was harmless.
Tension in the cast?
The situation increases tension in Benfica’s preparation. Midfielder Fredrik Aursnes stated that the squad experienced “a slightly different week”.
“It’s like a final tomorrow. We have to beat an incredible team in a difficult stadium,” added the 30-year-old Norwegian.
Benfica will also be without coach José Mourinho, suspended after receiving a red card in the first match. After the duel in Lisbon, the coach suggested that Vinicius provoked the fans during the celebration.
Even off the bench, Mourinho led Tuesday’s training, with the participation of Prestianni.
“I don’t know where he (Mourinho) will be. We prepared this match anticipating all the scenarios that could happen… On our side, as a technical committee, we prepared the team, we prepared all the scenarios so that tomorrow we can perform at our level”, said Tralhão.
UEFA appointed an Ethics and Discipline Inspector to investigate allegations of discriminatory behavior. The decision should be made after the process is completed.
