Vinicius Junior and the shame of Spanish football

Real Madrid's away matches in La Liga are always tense as their black strikers, especially young talent Vinicius Junior, become the target of attacks by extremist fans.

The Brazilian striker has been subjected to racist reactions many times, but perhaps the incident reached its peak at the Mestalla stadium, with La Liga's cover-up making Spanish football even more shameful.

Goalkeeper Mamardashvili rushed in to "settle the score" with Vinicius

Before the match on the night of May 21, hundreds of Valencia fans gathered outside the Mestalla stadium, chanting "Vinicius, eres un mono" (Vinicius is a monkey). When the match started, boos rang out in the stands, accompanied by curses every time Vinicius touched the ball.

Spanish fans criticize Vinicius' skin color

Referee Burgos Bengoetxea, however, turned a blind eye, even when Vinicius pointed out to him the people who cursed him and threw strange objects onto the field in the 71st minute. In the 90+7th minute, Vinicius reacted fiercely to Musah because this player intentionally wasted time, holding the ball to prevent Real Madrid from taking a corner kick. Goalkeeper Mamardashvili rushed in to settle the score with Vinicius, forcing players from both teams to intervene. Vinicius was "neck-locked" by Hugo Duro for several dozen seconds and reacted by slapping his hand into the opponent's face, leading to a red card for himself.

Teammates try to stop Vincius after receiving a red card

Referee Bengoetxea did not mention the racist behavior of Valencia fans in his match report, but only wrote that "fans threw strange objects onto the pitch", although what happened in the 71st minute was known to everyone, and even the loudspeaker at Mestalla stadium broadcast a call for the fans to stop their behavior immediately. Coach Carlo Ancelotti reacted to the referee not recording the incident in the minutes: "If Valencia fans were simply calling Vinicius stupid, then why did the referee have to stop the match?"

Referee Bengoetxea did not listen to Viniicius' complaint

In response to the public backlash, La Liga's referees' subcommittee said the report contained a typo and would be rewritten. Borja Sanjuan, spokesman for Valencia's city council, bluntly said: "I will never defend discriminatory behaviour against players, but Vinicius is a disgrace to football." UEFA was also not enthusiastic about getting involved.

The Mario Kempes stand at Mestalla stadium will be "closed" for 5 matches

FIFA President Gianni Infantino immediately said that the La Liga Organizing Committee and Valencia did not handle the incident related to Vinicius well: "There is no place for racism in football or society. FIFA absolutely supports the player in this case. The match must be stopped when racist behavior occurs, then the player must leave the field and if the racist behavior continues, the match must be stopped. When the match is restarted, if racist behavior still occurs, the match must be abandoned and the team with the racist fans must be disqualified."

Discrimination turns Vinicius into 'aggressor'

Unable to remain silent or ignore, Valencia FC announced that they would ban for life two fans who were said to have cursed Vinicius during the match, who were from the Ultra Yomus group that had been permanently banned from the Mestalla. The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and the Technical Committee for Referees (CTA) fired six referees from the VAR team in the match between Real Madrid for only sending referee De Burgos images with content that was unfavorable to Vinicius. As a result, referee De Burgos did not fully understand the situation and made an inappropriate decision to give a red card. In addition to VAR team leader Iglesias Villanueva, five of his colleagues also received similar punishments.

Spanish Football Federation President Luis Rubiales admits La Liga has a problem with "racism"

Vinicius' red card was overturned, part of the Mestalla will be closed for five games, and Valencia FC were fined £40,000 in the latest move by the RFEF. The RFEF's ruling found that racist chanting, swearing and throwing objects on the pitch made the victim an "aggressor". The decision was made by a three-person panel representing the RFEF, the Spanish Ministry of Culture and Sport and LaLiga.

Coach Ancelotti determined to demand justice for his students

Valencia FC has 10 working days to appeal the punishment but it is likely to be unsuccessful due to the strong reaction of the entire European football community. Vinicius Junior was taunted with racist words by fans when playing against Real Vallodolid and Barcelona, ​​and even a mannequin wearing a Real Madrid shirt with Vinicius's number was "hanged" by Atletico Madrid fans on a pedestrian bridge on a Madrid street.

Vinicius is not alone in the fight against racism

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva condemned the actions of the Spanish extremists. Many famous football figures such as Brazil's Neymar, Richarlison, Ronaldo de Lima, Kaka... have spoken out in support of Vinicius. The Brazilian government said on May 22 that Racial Equality Minister Anielle Franco would send a complaint to the Spanish government and La Liga. Meanwhile, a source from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the government had sent a protest message to the Spanish Ambassador to Brazil. Brasilia as well as called on FIFA, RFEF and La Liga to take "necessary measures".

Source: https://nld.com.vn/the-thao/vinicius-junior-va-noi-ho-then-cua-lang-bong-tay-ban-nha-20230524074123087.htm