By Kazeem Ajibola Shoyebo
Kylian Mbappé and several top football figures have publicly condemned the alleged racist abuse of Vinícius Júniorduring a heated UEFA Champions League clash, with the French star insisting the accused player “does not deserve to play” in the competition.
Mbappé claimed he directly heard a SL Benfica player, Gianluca Prestianni, repeatedly call Vinicius “monkey” after the Brazilian scored and celebrated.
“Vinicius scored, and what a goal. He celebrated. Then there was player number 25… (Gianluca Prestianni) who started speaking rudely,” Mbappé said.
“Then he put his shirt here and said ‘monkey, monkey, monkey.’ I heard him say it, and some Benfica players heard him too.”
The Real Madrid dressing room reacted with fury, with midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni revealing the players had discussed walking off the pitch in protest.
“We all agreed to walk off the pitch if something like this happened,” he said.
“But then we talked, so we decided to go out and beat them.”
Uruguay international Federico Valverde said the accused player’s attempt to hide his words made the incident even more suspicious.
“When you cover your mouth with your shirt, it’s obviously to say something really ugly,” Valverde said.
England defender Trent Alexander-Arnold described the alleged abuse as shameful.
“It’s a disgrace for football. Vini has suffered from this. It’s disgusting,” he said.
Former Netherlands star Wesley Sneijder also backed Vinicius, saying his reaction left little doubt.
“I have zero doubts. I am 1000% sure he said it,” Sneijder said.
French legend Thierry Henry called for accountability, while ex-England defender Micah Richards branded the accused player a “coward.”
Mbappé added that he saw no sign of remorse.
“An apology? From him? We are not idiots,” he said.
The incident has intensified pressure on European football authorities to investigate and reinforce measures against racism, as Vinicius once again finds himself at the center of another disturbing controversy.
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