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Gianluca Prestianni will not be suiting up for Benfica in its Champions League playoff second leg against Real Madrid.
The two teams will square off on Wednesday, Feb. 25 at the Santiago Bernabéu, with Real Madrid carrying a 1-0 advantage after last week's first leg in Lisbon.
That match was marred by accusations that Prestianni directed a racial slur toward Real Madrid star Vinícius Jr.
After Vinícius opened the scoring in the second half, Prestianni covered his mouth with his jersey when approaching the Brazilian. Nearby Real Madrid players signaled that the Argentine had made a racial insult, and Vinícius also said after the game that he'd been racially abused.
Referee François Letexier halted the match for 11 minutes under FIFA's anti-racism protocol.
Amid an investigation into the incident, UEFA announced this week that it had provisionally suspended Prestianni for one match. The suspension will see the 20-year-old sidelined for Wednesday's return leg.
Prestianni has denied using a racial slur, saying that Vinícius "misinterpreted what he thought he heard."
Should UEFA find Prestianni guilty of using the slur, he could be facing a suspension of 10 games.
Benfica, which has strongly backed its player, released a statement saying it was disappointed with UEFA's decision.
"The club regrets being deprived of the player while the process is still under investigation and will appeal this UEFA decision, even though the deadlines in question are unlikely to have any practical effect on the second leg of the Champions League playoff," the Portuguese club said.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Is Gianluca Prestianni playing for Benfica today vs. Real Madrid?
Continue reading...
The two teams will square off on Wednesday, Feb. 25 at the Santiago Bernabéu, with Real Madrid carrying a 1-0 advantage after last week's first leg in Lisbon.
That match was marred by accusations that Prestianni directed a racial slur toward Real Madrid star Vinícius Jr.
After Vinícius opened the scoring in the second half, Prestianni covered his mouth with his jersey when approaching the Brazilian. Nearby Real Madrid players signaled that the Argentine had made a racial insult, and Vinícius also said after the game that he'd been racially abused.
Referee François Letexier halted the match for 11 minutes under FIFA's anti-racism protocol.
Amid an investigation into the incident, UEFA announced this week that it had provisionally suspended Prestianni for one match. The suspension will see the 20-year-old sidelined for Wednesday's return leg.
Prestianni has denied using a racial slur, saying that Vinícius "misinterpreted what he thought he heard."
Should UEFA find Prestianni guilty of using the slur, he could be facing a suspension of 10 games.
Benfica, which has strongly backed its player, released a statement saying it was disappointed with UEFA's decision.
"The club regrets being deprived of the player while the process is still under investigation and will appeal this UEFA decision, even though the deadlines in question are unlikely to have any practical effect on the second leg of the Champions League playoff," the Portuguese club said.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Is Gianluca Prestianni playing for Benfica today vs. Real Madrid?
Continue reading...
