soccer

Gianluca Prestianni denies racist insults to Vinicius, says 'You misunderstood'

Benfica winger Gianluca Prestianni denies directing racist insults at Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior, claiming the forward misheard his words during their recent match.

Prestianni took to Instagram to clarify that he never intended to offend Vinicius and regrets the threats received from Real Madrid players. While Kylian Mbappé supported Vinicius' account of hearing the term 'Mono' five times, Uefa has not yet commented on the incident. The two teams will meet again next Wednesday in Madrid, with Real holding the advantage.