Federico Valverde expressed his deep dissatisfaction and extreme resentment over what he described as racist behavior directed at his teammate Vinicius Junior during the Real Madrid-Benfica match, which witnessed a pause that lasted about ten minutes before it resumed.
In statements to beIN Sports, Valverde stated that what happened was “a very serious matter,” describing the scene that followed the goal as “very unfortunate.” He explained that he did not hear the offensive chants himself, but his teammates told him that there were racist chants directed against Vinicius. He also touched on statements made by some players, expressing his question about how to escape punishment by covering the mouth while uttering what he called “prohibited phrases.”
On the technical side, Valverde believed that the match was strong and witnessed a serious performance on the defensive and offensive levels, considering that the goal the team scored gave him relief before the return match. He stressed his happiness with the level of his colleagues and the victory achieved away from home, calling for the continuation of hard work to maintain these gains.
It is noteworthy that Real Madrid achieved a victory over Benfica with a 1-0 goal in the first leg of the qualifying round for the round of 16 of the Champions League, and the return match is scheduled to be held in Madrid next week.
