No Mourinho and Prestianni for Benfica in Champions League
There won’t be another confrontation between Vinicius Junior and Gianluca Prestianni in the Champions League this week. Real Madrid and Benfica will meet at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium on Wednesday but UEFA banished Prestianni from the game on Monday following accusations he racially abused Vinicius in the first leg of the knockout round last week.
Madrid won 1-0 in Lisbon after Vinicius scored in the second half. But when the Brazil forward celebrated by the Benfica corner flag and upset the local fans and players, the game was halted for nearly 10 minutes. Prestianni confronted Vinicius, who accused the Argentine of calling him “monkey.” Prestianni denied racially insulting Vinicius.
The anti-racism protocol was activated but no further action was taken during the match as there was no evidence against Prestianni, who covered his mouth with his shirt while talking to Vinicius. The Madrid forward was shown a yellow card after his celebration.
UEFA said the one-match suspension of Prestianni from its control, ethics and disciplinary body was related to discriminatory behavior. “This is without prejudice to any ruling that the UEFA disciplinary bodies may subsequently make following the conclusion of the ongoing investigation and its respective submission to the UEFA disciplinary bodies,” it said in a statement.
Benfica said in a statement that it lamented that Prestianni was suspended while the investigation was underway. It said it would appeal UEFA’s suspension. Portuguese media said Prestianni was expected to travel to Madrid with the squad. Prestianni did not play in Benfica’s 3-0 win over AVS on Saturday in the Portuguese league because of a yellow card suspension, but he was expected to be on the field along with Vinicius during Wednesday’s match at the Bernabeu. Vinicius scored Madrid’s goal in a 2-1 loss at Osasuna on Saturday in La Liga.
Mourinho out: Missing for Benfica on Wednesday will be coach Jose Mourinho, who was sent off late in the first leg for complaining to the referee. The former Madrid coach criticized Vinicius for celebrating his goal by the Benfica flag.
Benfica said Mourinho was not going to attend the pre-game news conference on Tuesday, with his assistant taking over. Mourinho said Saturday it was a “tough week” for everyone at Benfica. He declined to comment when asked if he regretted his criticism of Vinicius.
Surprising Bod/Glimt: On Tuesday, small Norwegian club BodÃ/Glimt will look to keep its surprising run going when it takes a two-goal advantage for the second leg at Inter Milan. The first leg win followed back-to-back wins against Manchester City and Atletico Madrid in the league phase.
Inter, last year’s Champions League runner-up, will hope to overcome the deficit and show the loss in Norway was a fluke amid a run of seven wins in eight games across all competitions. It will have to do it without star forward Lautaro Martinez because of a left calf injury. “We have to do what we know how to do, step onto the pitch with confidence, and be aware that if there’s a team that can turn this tie around, it’s ours,” Inter coach Cristian Chivu said on Monday. “We mustn’t lose our balance, confidence, or self-belief. A match lasts 90, 100, even 120 minutes, and maybe penalties after that. We mustn’t rush to score and then leave ourselves open. It’s about managing key moments.”
Juve’s crisis: Another Italian club which will need a comeback will be Juventus when it hosts Galatasaray on Wednesday after losing 5-2 in the first leg in Turkey. Juventus has been struggling, though, and is coming off a 2-0 home loss to Como in Serie A that hurt its hopes of Champions League qualification next season. It was Juventus’ third straight defeat across all competitions and its fifth game in a row without a win.
Focused PSG: Defending European champion Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco won in Ligue 1 this weekend ahead of their second leg in Paris on Wednesday. Monaco’s 3-2 victory over Lens allowed PSG to regain the league lead after beating Metz 3-0. In the Champions League, PSG came from two goals down against Monaco to win the first leg 3-2. Desire Doue, who scored twice against Monaco, also found the net in the win against Metz.
Atletico Madrid rebounds: Atletico squandered a two-goal lead and conceded late in a 3-3 draw in its first leg at Club Brugge. Diego Simeone’s team rebounded ahead of Tuesday’s return match by defeating Espanyol 4-2 in La Liga on Saturday. Ademola Lookman scored again, earning his fourth goal in six matches since being signed by Atletico.
“It’s always important to win ahead of an important match like the one we have on Tuesday,” Simeone said. Elsewhere also on Tuesday, Newcastle will be in control when it hosts Qarabag defending a 6-1 first-leg win, while Bayer Leverkusen holds a 2-0 lead from its win at Olympiakos. Borussia Dortmund also won 2-0 in the first leg against Atalanta ahead of the return game in Italy.
