Lisbon: Real Madrid avenged their earlier defeat against Benfica with a 1-0 victory in the Champions League. Vinicius Junior's winning goal helped Real Madrid avenge their previous defeat against Benfica with a 1-0 victory in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League play-off round.
According to Thai News Agency, in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League play-off round, 15-time Spanish champions Real Madrid successfully avenged their previous loss, defeating Benfica of Portugal 1-0. The winning goal came from Vinicius Junior in the 50th minute. However, the game was stopped for nearly 10 minutes when Vinicius refused to continue playing after being subjected to racist remarks from Benfica's Argentinian winger, Gianluca Pestiani. The situation was resolved, and play resumed. In the 85th minute, Benfica manager Jose Mourinho was shown a red card by referee Fran§ois Letesier of France for a heated protest against a referee's decision.
The second leg will be played at Real Madrid's Santiago Bernab©u stadium on Wednesday, February 25th.
After the game, Real Madrid's interim coach, Alvaro Arbeloa, commented on the heated incident on the field, stating, "You have to ask the Benfica players what they said to Vinicius. I think everyone here, and everyone in the football world, deserves an answer to that question." He also clearly reiterated his stance that football does not tolerate racism under any circumstances.
Benfica coach Jose Mourinho stated that he wanted to remain neutral because he had spoken with Vinicius, who presented one perspective, and then with Gianluca Prestiani, who told a different story. He acknowledged that incidents on the field are sensitive matters in football and therefore he was trying to stay neutral and refrain from judging anyone as right or wrong.