UEFA has suspended Benfica midfielder Gianluca Prestianni for the Champions League play off second leg against Real Madrid. The decision came on Monday after he was accused of racially abusing Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior.
UEFA said its disciplinary team is still looking into the incident from the first leg last week. In a short statement, UEFA said Prestianni is suspended for the next UEFA club match he could play. This means he will miss Wednesday’s match at the Santiago Bernabeu. Benfica need to come back from a 1 0 loss to reach the last 16.
Vinicius scored the only goal in the first leg. After his celebration, he told the referee about the alleged racist abuse. The match stopped for about 10 minutes.
UEFA said the one match ban is temporary and does not affect the final decision after the probe ends. If UEFA finds that Prestianni racially abused Vinicius, he will face a ban of at least 10 matches.
Prestianni, 20, denied the claim. He said he did not racially abuse the Real Madrid star. Cameras showed him arguing with Vinicius while covering his mouth with his shirt.
Real Madrid defender Trent Alexander Arnold called the incident a disgrace to football. Striker Kylian Mbappe said Prestianni should not play in the Champions League again.
Benfica coach Jose Mourinho will also miss the second leg due to a suspension. He criticised Vinicius for his long goal celebration. Mourinho also said Benfica cannot be racist and pointed to club legend Eusebio as an example.
