Gianluca Prestianni banned: UEFA confirms punishment for Benfica player after Vinicius Jr. flashpoint originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Real Madrid's Champions League playoff clash with Benfica in February was plunged into controversy after Vinicius Jr. brilliantly opened the scoring for the visitors in Lisbon.
The Brazil star alleged he was abused after celebrating his goal in the 1-0 win and immediately informed the referee, who initiated the anti-racism protocol that saw the game halted for around 10 minutes.
Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni was at the centre of the flashpoint after he was seen covering his mouth with his shirt as he spoke to Vinicius.
Prestianni and Benfica denied he made racist remarks. The winger argued that Vinicius misheard him, adding: "I was never racist and I regret the threats I received from Real Madrid players."
UEFA handed Prestianni a provisional one-game ban while it investigated the incident. On April 24, UEFA announced its Control Ethics and Disciplinary Body had reached a verdict.
MORE:Vinicius Jr. incident in Benfica vs. Real Madrid: Explaining Champions League incident, Mourinho reaction
UEFA has handed Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni a six-match ban for homophobic conduct.
Prestianni's provisional suspension, served during the second leg against Madrid, counts as part of the ban. The final three games of the ban are suspended for two years.
In reality, the verdict means Prestianni will miss Benfica's first two matches in European competition next season.
UEFA cited homophobic abuse, meaning its investigation tallies with the version of events Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni relayed after the match.
”The truth is that it cannot happen," he said. "We’ve been told that the boy called [Vinicius] ‘monkey’ with the shirt covering his mouth. Then [Prestianni] says he didn’t say anything, that he said ‘f****ts’, but it doesn’t matter."
Under UEFA guidelines, Prestianni would have received a minimum 10-game ban from European matches if he had been found guilty of racist abuse.
Prestianni's relatively more lenient punishment leaves UEFA open to accusations that it treats homophobic abuse less seriously than racism.
UEFA has requested that FIFA extends the ban to cover global competitions.
This means it would apply in the event of Prestianni taking part in the World Cup for his native Argentina
However, the 20-year-old has only won one cap for Le Albiceleste and was unlikely to have featured in any case.