Vincius Junior was on the receiving end of racism as he was racially abused at the Estadio de Mestalla during Valencia’s 1-0 victory over Real Madrid.
Diego Lopez scored in the 33rd minute to give the home side the lead in what turned out to be the winning goal and secured all three points for the hosts in their struggle for survival but there was more to the game than what happened on the pitch as Brazilian forward Vinicius Junior was on the receiving end of racial chants by the fans in the stadium as they were loudly heard chanting “Vinicius, Mono” which translates to “Monkey” in English.
The Brazilian was also sent off in the 7th minute of extra time after the 90th minute by referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea after a VAR review and said this after the game concerning the incident; “The prize the racists have won is my red card. It’s not football, It’s La Liga”.
The 22-year old also took to his Instagram page to criticize the League for their lack of criticism towards racism, stating that the federation encourages racism. He posted;
“It wasn’t the first time, not the second and not the third. Racism is normal in La Liga. The competition thinks its normal, so does the Federation and the opponents encourage it. I am so sorry. The compettion that once belonged to Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano and Messi, today belongs to the racists.”