Vinicius Junior scored the decisive goal as Real Madrid defeated Benfica 2-1 and 3-1 on aggregate that night to advance to the last 16 of the Champions League.
Vinicius started for Real eight days after the Champions League play-off round first leg in Lisbon, during which the Brazilian claimed Gianluca Prestiani had racially abused him, a claim the Benfica player denied.
Before kick-off at the Santiago Bernabéu, Real fans held up banners with messages of support for Vinicius, who scored Lisbon’s only goal.
As the players took to the field, two powerful messages were read: “No to racism” and “Respect.”
Real Madrid fans unfurled an anti-racism banner ahead of the match against Benfica at the Bernabéu
Benfica got off to a perfect start and equalized after 14 minutes with a goal from Rafa Silva, but Aurelien Choameni put Madrid back in the lead with a powerful shot from distance.
However, the decisive moment belonged to Vinicius, who scored in enemy territory with 10 minutes remaining. He drove away in celebration, dancing by the corner flag and soaking in the cheers of the home supporters. This goal effectively ended the contest and carried emotional weight and significance.
Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior (left) celebrates with his teammates
The Argentine winger was part of Benfica’s squad on the trip to Madrid, but UEFA imposed a provisional sanction on Prestianni on Monday, excluding him from the match.
Benfica had appealed the decision to suspend Prestiani, but UEFA rejected the Portuguese club’s appeal on Wednesday afternoon.
“Gianluca Prestiani remains provisionally suspended for the next UEFA club competition for which he would have been eligible,” UEFA said in a statement.
UEFA appointed an Ethics and Discipline Investigator (EDI) after the first leg and made a swift decision.
UEFA said on Monday that the provisional suspension “will not affect any subsequent decision that the UEFA Disciplinary Authority may make following the outcome of the ongoing investigation and respective submission to the UEFA Disciplinary Authority.”
Play was suspended for 10 minutes in last Tuesday’s first leg after the Brazilian left the field and refused to return.
It happened after Vinicius gave his team the lead five minutes into the second half with a brilliant individual attack, slotting the ball into the goal from an angle.
After celebrating in front of his home fans, he suddenly became visibly upset by what was said to him and immediately alerted the referee, who stopped the match.
Benfica manager Jose Mourinho was heavily criticized for his post-match comments about the incident, but did not hold his customary pre-match press conference on Tuesday.
Mourinho appeared to hint after the first leg that the winger had abused him during his celebrations, saying: “Something always happens in the stadium where Vinicius plays.”
In response, anti-discrimination group Kick It Out accused Mourinho of “gaslighting”.
Mourinho, who was sent off for yelling at referee François Letexier in Lisbon, was scheduled to watch the second leg from the stands.
Real will face either Sporting Lisbon or Manchester City in the last 16, with the draw taking place at 11am on Friday.
Real Madrid sends off fan for Nazi salute
Real Madrid also launched an investigation after a fan was removed from the Bernabéu ground for allegedly giving a Nazi salute shortly before the match against Benfica.
“Real Madrid CF has announced that it has urgently requested the club’s disciplinary committee to initiate an immediate ejection procedure for a member who was seen on television cameras giving the Nazi salute in the area containing the animation stand just before the start of the match between Real Madrid and Benfica,” the statement read.
“The member was immediately identified by the club’s security staff shortly after appearing on the broadcast and immediately expelled from the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.
“Real Madrid condemns gestures and expressions of this kind that incite violence and hatred in sport and society.”
