BENFICA vs REAL MADRID | Champions League Playoff 1st Leg | 17.02.26 | 21:00 CET

What these idiots do not understand is, fine you can paint a target on your back by being a dickhead, then call me a dickhead, there's no need to racially abuse me.

Call me a ********, twat, dickhead, whatever, people jumping straight to race tells a lot about them.

 

Just a few thoughts:

1. Vini’s celebration was 100% normal. We’ve seen it so many times. The yellow was a disgrace.

2. Benfica is a disgraceful club. How can they support a racist, just disgusting.

3. Mourinho can ******** off too. His comments after the game are a disgrace. Total loser.

4. The team showed togetherness in a tough moment. That’s should make all Madrid fans very proud.

 

We are Maffeoing that midget aren't we in the return leg. Will probably cry like Maffeo too. Uefa should throw the book at them for pelting our players with objects let alone the racism stuff. Come on Uefa do something useful for once.

Anyways on the game, thought as a whole we did pretty well in an otherwise hostile environment. We defended well around our box. Tcho made many many interventions that got us the ball back after losing it. Honestly it was such a good display by him. Camavinga helping out Carreras defensively and breaking lines offensively was great to see. Was a little bit disappointed in Arda for being abit tame off the ball and not really doing much with it on the ball. Had a really good shot that could've gone it.

Huijsen is a mystery to me. On one hand he is really good on the ball. On the other he is so afraid to make a mistake he plays the ball for a throw in without any pressure. The game the team was booed all 90 mins, Huijsen was booed for doing just that. He needs to believe in himself. Its great to see Rudiger back, because he is giving him alot of support.

Incredible save by Tibu on that low shot. Strong hands. A very underrated save.

Think we should roll with this line up from now on and build some much needed chemistry.

I like Brahim and think he can be a very useful player but my word, stop hogging the God dam ball, it puts us in very terrible positions when he ultimately loses it.

Credit where credit is due. Arbeloa managed this game perfectly from the XI to the tactics to the subs. Yes, subbing out Carreras was necessary although I would've subbed on Fran and not Dani. I like that he is brave to sub on Castilla players in a tough game or doesn't default sub out our attackers for the fear of conceding and instead let's us play our own game without having to move the whole team inside the box because we dont have offensive outlets we could use to play out from pressure. And most of all he learnt from his mistake, he left the 433 and went with a 442 which quite frankly is our best formation. Franco was shocking in the previous game and he rightfully lost his spot.

Hope he continues being himself and doesn't start playing players out of positions again. Jimenez did very well against Valencia and Pitarch did really well yesterday. Should keep it that simple no need to complicate it.

 

Look at this video. Prestianni was already calling Vinícius Jr a “m*onkey” long before he even heard it.

That’s why Mbappé said he heard it five times, and reason why he was the first to confront him. pic.twitter.com/ApkVINqoRv

— 10 (@Kylian) February 18, 2026

 

Prestianni is a racist and should be banned for at least 10 UCL games and heavily fined. Of course, he must also apologize for what he said. Benfica CEO Rui Manuel César Costa should also be punished for the altercation he had with a member of the Real Madrid staff.*
I’m disgusted by the fact that Benfica are trying to deny what Prestianni said and make excuses instead of taking responsibility and posting a clear message against racism.

As for Mourinho, I’m not surprised by what he said or how he acted. It’s the same way he has behaved throughout his career. Too bad he got a red card and won’t be coming to the Bernabéu.

Regarding the game, Arbeloa learned from the last match against Benfica and the team looked really good. The racist incident ruined our momentum and affected the entire game. Without it, we could have scored at least one more goal.

I have to say, Benfica were really sore losers. Last game, when they won, they celebrated and talked big. Now they conceded one goal in the 70th minute and had a mental breakdown.

I also have to mention Otamendi, this guy is not only embarrassing but he is the definition of pathetic sad ass clown.

Benfica should also be punished for the crowd throwing objects at Vini. A water bottle hit him in the back and the game wasn’t stopped. If it had hit the assistant referee, they would have stopped the game for sure.

*If he started the fight, he should be fired.

 

🚨 Rio Ferdinand: "Shoutout to Trent and Kylian Mbappé for backing Vinicius Junior last night." pic.twitter.com/oeNfwJGXtn

— Madrid Xtra (@MadridXtra) February 18, 2026

🚨 Rio Ferdinand: "How are we still sitting here talking about racism? How are people trying to justify when someone says something racist?" "Vini is to blame? He should not celebrate like that? How? We cannot accept this. Football is the beautiful game because it is the… pic.twitter.com/vpfsijafSF

— Madrid Xtra (@MadridXtra) February 18, 2026

🚨🗣️ Kylian Mbappé: "Prestianni shouldn't come to the Bernabéu, the best stadium in the world, he doesn't deserve it, he shouldn't play." pic.twitter.com/EhqHbpAr5a

— Madrid Xtra (@MadridXtra) February 18, 2026

 

Absolute lies.

1) Vinicius Jr looks away as it is said to him. This is crucial because he does not see the player covering his mouth when saying it - if V Jr was lying, and he is unaware the player covered his mouth, it would be easily debunked by a lipreader.

2) His reaction… https://t.co/22C2P7cMMd pic.twitter.com/ruFp8sTXrE

— Football Tips (@JamesMurphyTips) February 18, 2026

 

Careca first performed that celebration in the 1990 World Cup after scoring against Sweden . Roger Milla continued to do it throughout the same World Cup. It became an iconic celebration and was embraced globally. Yet, when Vini did it yesterday, he was met with a yellow card, projectiles, racist abuse, and even lectures from Jose Mourinho. A joyful celebration is now policed as provocation. The change in tolerance levels of those watching is alarming.

 

Haha!

Mbappe also heard him say it FIVE times at various points. Players dont react that way for no reason. Take your Jose tinted glasses off engage your brain.

Jose also used the equivalent of "I have black friends, I can't be racist"

Ffs

 

100 percent with Vini on this! Proud of our players reaction as well. This was team building moment!

When you’re a racist, it’s always hanging right below the surface. All it takes is a person of color annoying you a little, and it comes out.

Vini can be an annoying guy lol…so he brings out the racism in A LOT of people.

Baila Vini!

 

I read through this thread and I would say I am proud of the reaction.

I am also not surprised by who haven't posted. Those who suddenly became absent or have little to say (two didn’t disappear completely as they were making excuse/defense in Vinicius thread).

If we lose the same people would have every criticism and critique from their expansive understanding and wisdom on all subjects.


Anyways, this is the time for UEFA, Jefferson, etc... to actually do something and I applaud Thierry Henry and Ballague and others who put tremendous pressure on them and mocked their fake programs that do nothing but cosplay a significant issue.

Oh and before they say so; yes if this was a Madrid player or our fans I would want even more significant punishment.. as I am not a piece of shit or trash who adapts with whatever only suits me.

It is not lost on me those who continually use this as an excuse can't comprehend or understand it because that is who they are and how they process life.

 

How did Prestianni knew that Vini was informing the referee about his racist remark if he didn’t say it !

pic.twitter.com/wiof3mNztp

— Real Madrid Info ³⁶ (@RMadridInfo) February 18, 2026

 

🚨 BREAKING: Benfica president Rui Costa nearly exchanged blows with a member of the Real Madrid delegation after the match.

Benfica have denied that this happened, but CBS cameras captured the moment of the clash.

He was trying to enter the Real Madrid locker room but got… pic.twitter.com/c9gLQR62c3

— Madrid Universal (@MadridUniversal) February 18, 2026

 

Yesterday wasn't the first time Prestianni was racist.

Prestianni video from 2022, that kid is always a trouble causer, people like that don’t deserve space in our sport

pic.twitter.com/KW778BW8b2

— Miss ADEL🦋🦚🌹 (@a_derll) February 18, 2026

 

I don't think it was that serious, some aggitation yes, but not physical. At least from that I saw.

Benfica denied in an official statement that their president had any argument after the game,

But CBS camera catched the moment between Rui Costa and a member of Real Madrid staff and the goal keeper coach. https://t.co/1o0zu1jjTn

— Real Madrid Info ³⁶ (@RMadridInfo) February 18, 2026

As far as Mourinho is concerned, I can understand him having to say his guy is "innocent until proven guilty", but then he goes and says all that about Vini provoking the whole thing with his celebration... Wow. Rich coming from him indeed.

Mourinho telling Vinicius how to celebrate is quite ironic. pic.twitter.com/JZRMsBDZqj

— - (@LMDiddy14) February 17, 2026

Benfica fans "not being racist":

🤬😤🤦🏽‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/yygny2IOVz

— Rio Ferdinand (@rioferdy5) February 18, 2026

Full video of the whole incident below. You can see the little bitch covering his mouth for a full minute and mouthing off.

THE FULL INCIDENT ON WHAT HAPPENED!

Watch the video clearly, you can see Mbappe already heard Prestianni calling Vini racial slurs before Vini even picked it up hence why he was so agitated. pic.twitter.com/F1Fay8fN0F

— 🧍🏾#eliminatelottin (@fastniche) February 18, 2026

Benfica official statement:

https://x.com/theMadridZone/status/2024119759265038766?s=20

Meanwhile Benfica legends and fans online are calling Prestianni out for being racist and saying how this is completely on brand for someone like him.

 

Utterly embarrassing response from Benfica. The justification that Eusebio once played for them truly takes the cake. From an American perspective, were some Brooklyn fans and teammates not racist toward Jackie Robinson? Can someone from Chicago never be racist because Michael Jordan played there? (Sidenote: ironically the only white person I've ever met in my life who casually used the N-word was from Chicago.)

Alternate angles of RM players who were "too far" from Prestianni to have possibly heard him (keeping in mind he would have been intentionally trying to say it loud enough for Vini to hear him, regardless of the slur/insult he says he used.

 

Genuinely shocking, but I'm not surprised anymore. Like I said, it was a dark moment in football, once again. Inexplicable and inexcusable behaviour that should receive the highest possible sanction.

 

On El Chiringuito, many of the journalists were also saying Mbappe lied. Not only Vinicius.

I'm genuinely exhausted by all of this, the fact we have to share the same oxygen as some of these people. I give up.

Mourinho is just deflecting so that we talk about Eusebio and Vini's celebration instead of the racist fans in the stadium and his own racist player. Oldest trick in the book. It is not going to work, the whole world saw it. Mourinho is a fuking disgrace.

 

lmao the cognitive dissonance and hypocrisy required for a post like this. Are you completely unaware you just said something very discriminatory and xenophobic? Literally the type of things you are trying to malign?

Combating an allegation of discrimination by generalizing an entire nationality is, by definition, discriminatory.

 

I dunno, I wouldn't have expected this from what I knew of them before, but maybe it's just appropriate that Benfica - a club represented by a bald eagle - might in fact be a really shitty club. Entities represented by bald eagles tend to be shitty. Lazio, the United States, etc...

 

Maybe, but maybe the thought came from listening to several Argentine presidents from Menem to Fernandez and their views, who are/were supposed to be representative of and represent "all" the Argentinian people but..... i digress re the forum

 

First and foremost, I have nothing against your club. I'm not accusing the club of being racist.

Second, I've been one of the most critical people on this forum when it comes to Vinicius' behavior. This reaction was not in any way shape or form warranted against Vinicius. He's allowed to celebrate after a goal.

If you want to say I'm discriminatory against Argentinians to defend your club and Prestianni, go ahead. There's something about Argentinian culture that predisposes itself to one becoming an asshole. Is that better for you? Prestianni, even if he didn't say anything racist towards Vinicius, and I'd wager that he did, is a piece of shit with the diving and "winding up".

Furthermore, the Eusebio argument that your club is mounting is pretty wild. Again, I don't think Benfica is a racist club and the reaction from your fans is probably more tied to not knowing what was going on, but to say Eusebio played for your club so that means that Prestianni is a shitbag is the equivalent of, "I have a black friend..."