Rio Ferdinand has come to the defence of Jose Mourinho amid a backlash over his handling of the Vinicius Jr racism row, while acknowledging the veteran coach approached the incident in the wrong way.
Vinicius Jr accused Gianluca Prestianni of calling him a ‘monkey’ while covering his face during the first leg of Real Madrid’s Champions League play-off tie against Benfica last weekend.
Mourinho has come under-fire for his post-match comments, after suggesting Vinicius Jr had incited the crowd with his celebration after scoring the only goal of the match.
The Benfica boss also referenced club legend Eusebio as proof that the Portuguese side are not racist.
‘When you score a goal like that, you celebrate in a respectful way,’ Mourinho said post-match.
When asked if he believed Vinicius had incited the crowd, Mourinho replied ‘Yeah, I believe so.’
Jose Mourinho has faced criticism for claiming Vinicius Jr ‘incited’ the unsavoury scenes between Real Madrid and Benfica, after the Brazilian alleged he had been racially abused
The Benfica boss referenced club legend Eusebio as he defended the Portuguese side from allegations of racism
Rio Ferdinand defended Mourinho amid a backlash to his comments, but suggested the 63-year-old had approached the situation in the wrong way
‘The words they exchange, Prestianni with Vinicius, I want to be independent. I don’t comment about it.
‘When he was arguing about racism I told him the biggest person in the history of this club was black [Eusebio]. This club, the last thing it is is racist, so if in his mind it was something in relation to that, this is Benfica.
‘There is something wrong because it happens in every stadium. Every stadium that Vinicius plays [in] something happens. Always.’
Former Man United defender Rio Ferdinand has suggested Mourinho will have regrets about his comments, but also offered a defence of the 63-year-old coach.
Speaking on his Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, he said: ‘I think Jose, in time, will sit there and go, “Maybe I approached that wrong.”
‘And it doesn’t make Jose Mourinho a racist by the way.
‘I think Jose Mourinho has done enough for black footballers from all over the world, who look at him like a father figure, to suggest that the guy hasn’t got a racist bone in his body.
‘I just think he approached this situation, unfortunately, wrong.
Mourinho, who has been roundly criticised for his post-match comments, will not hold a press conference ahead of Wednesday’s second leg
The incident occured just moments after Vinicius Jr scored the only goal of the first leg in Lisbon
‘I’d love to hear what his thoughts are on it now, actually, since all of it spilled over from those comments.’
Mourinho, however, will not address the situation ahead of Wednesday’s second leg in Madrid.
Having been sent off last week, Mourinho is not obliged to address the media due to his touchline ban under UEFA rules and has opted against speaking at a pre-match press conference.
Mourinho’s assistant Joao Tralhao will instead take his place at both the pre and post-match press conferences.
On Monday, UEFA announced Prestianni will serve a provisional one-match ban, a sanction which rules him out of the second leg on Wednesday.
The measure comes as UEFA continues to investigate the allegation of racial abuse, a claim Prestianni has denied.
In response to the one-match ban, Benfica released a statement in which they revealed that they will appeal the decision.
The Portuguese side said: ‘Sport Lisboa e Benfica has been informed of UEFA’s decision to impose a provisional one-match suspension on its player Gianluca Prestianni, as part of the ongoing investigation into the incident that occurred during the match against Real Madrid.
Gianluca Prestianni (right) has been handed a one-match suspension after allegations of racial abuse toward Vinicius Jr (left)
Prestianni is accused of calling Vinicius Jr a ‘monkey’ and will miss the second leg of Benfica’s Champions League play-off with Real Madrid
‘The Club regrets being deprived of the player while the process is still under investigation and will appeal this UEFA decision, even though the deadlines in question are unlikely to have any practical effect on the second leg of the Champions League.
‘Sport Lisboa e Benfica also reaffirms its unwavering commitment to combating all forms of racism or discrimination, values that are part of its historical identity and are reflected in its daily actions, its global community, the work of the Benfica Foundation, and major figures in the Club’s history, such as Eusebio.’
The allegations against Prestianni came moments after Vinicius Jr gave Los Blancos the lead at the Estadio da Luz in Lisbon, with Benfica midfielder walking towards the Brazilian following the celebrations.
Moments later, after the Argentine could be seen lifting his shirt over his mouth, Vinicius raced over to referee Francois Letexier to report racial abuse.
Madrid star Kylian Mbappe claimed Prestianni racially abused his team-mate five times, but the Argentinian insisted his opponent ‘misinterpreted what he thinks he heard’.
The Benfica midfielder has since given evidence to the investigation, telling UEFA chiefs that he did not say ‘mono’ – Spanish for ‘monkey’ – but instead directed a homophobic slur towards Vinicius, according to ESPN.
Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni also told reporters that the Benfica player had claimed to have used a homophobic slur in the immediate aftermath of the match.
