Overview
- Gianluca Prestianni, who spoke in a TV interview on Wednesday, denied calling Vinícius Júnior a racist slur and said he was punished without proof.
- The dispute began in the first leg in Lisbon after Vinícius scored and danced at the corner flag, which led to a melee and the claim that Prestianni said “mono” (“monkey”).
- UEFA issued a provisional suspension that barred the Benfica forward from the return match at the Santiago Bernabéu.
- Prestianni said Kylian Mbappé called him “puto racista” during the flare-up and described such taunts as common attempts to provoke in Argentine football.
- He said the episode hurt his family and thanked Benfica and teammates for support, and he also received an Argentina call-up for upcoming friendlies with no final UEFA decision reported.