Following Sunday’s racial abuse, several players have come out in Vinicius Juniors support , including the likes of Rio Ferdinand and Gary Lineker. The head coach of Real Madrid’s fiercest rivals Barcelona, Xavi Hernandez, also criticised Valencia fans and backed Vinicius Jr.
And now, Barcelona winger Raphinha too came out in the of Vinicius Junior, his Real Madrid rival and Brazil teammate. At the Mestalla Stadium, the 22-year-old Brazilian winger was exposed to racial shouts from the home crowd. Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea, the game’s referee, also sent the Brazilian off in the closing moments.
‘There will be war’ – Raphinha sends strong message to Vinicius Junior
Following his red card against Valencia on Sunday, Vinicius Junior slammed La Liga and ‘racists’ in Spain, after the 1-0 loss for Real Madrid came to a tumultuous conclusion. The Brazilian was restrained by teammates after being subjected to racist comments from the crowd before getting into a fight with Hugo Duro.
Diego Lopez’s first-half goal had put Los Blancos in the lead, and as time ran out at the Mestalla Stadium, tensions were high. After Vinicius Junior heard racial chanting in the second half, the game was suspended for a while. Later, in stoppage time of the second half, the 22-year-old was shown straight red for aggressive behaviour after lashing out at Duro.
However, the racial abuse has been hovering over the Real Madrid star’s head throughout the season, as he has frequently been the target of racial taunts. He has already faced abuse from supporters of Osasuna, Real Mallorca, Real Valladolid, and Atletico Madrid this year.
Barcelona’s Raphinha also extended his support to Vinicius Junior by removing his shirt as he exited the pitch to reveal a vest that read:
“As long as the color of the skin is more important than the brightness of the eyes, there will be war. We are together, Vinicius.”
Despite Real Madrid and Barcelona’s rivalry, racism is a problem that goes beyond football. When discussing the Vinicius scenario in his pre-game news conference versus Real Valladolid, Xavi expressed a similar viewpoint. The Spaniard asserted that the only occupation in which insults are tolerated is football. He further asserted that such instances call for the termination of matches. Xavi said:
“Yes, matches should be stopped. It is the only profession in which insults are accepted. I don’t see any baker or teacher being insulted at work. All this has to be stopped. Try insulting a building worker. I’m sure a brick will fall on your head. It doesn’t matter what shirt you wear. Vinicius is a person before he is a footballer. We have to defend the football professional. I don’t as a person, as a citizen, that you have to put up with insults.”
The Spanish FA has rescinded Vinicius Junior’s red card against Valencia. And due to the insults, Valencia has been compelled to close the Mario Kempes stand for five games and was also fined £40,000 for the “very serious offences” committed by their supporters. Given that his red card was nullified, Vinicius Jr. may play against Rayo Vallecano for Real Madrid.