‘Vinicius Junior is the victim’, says Ancelotti – 10/06/2023 – Sport

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti reiterated this Friday (6) that Vinicius Junior “was the victim of racist insults”, regretting that they are trying to “divert the focus”. The statement came after a Spanish newspaper accused the player of lying on its cover.

“Something happened here that I believe is trying to divert the focus, the focus is that Vinicius was the victim of racial insults,” Ancelotti said at a press conference this Friday.

“Whether it’s one, ten, a thousand, ten thousand, it doesn’t change the focus, the focus is that we had a player who was the victim of racial insults,” said the Real Madrid coach.

“That there are media outlets that want to divert the focus from this saddens and angers me,” he added.

Ancelotti responded in this way after the Valencia-based newspaper Super Deporte published on its front page an image of Vinicius with a long false nose under the headline “Pinochius”, in reference to the children’s story character whose nose grew when he lied.

“The madridista recognizes that he provoked the fans, but he lies to the referee by pointing out everything [o estádio] Mestalla for the racist insults,” the newspaper captioned.

Valencia had already expressed on Thursday its “surprise, rejection and indignation” at the “information published around the alleged statement” by Vinicius before a judge investigating the racist insults he received in the LaLiga match on May 21 past, against Valencia himself.

According to the local press, Vinicius declared before the judge that he felt “offended” by the insults he received at the stadium that day, which were “because of his skin color”, and stated that they were generalized insults from the entire stadium.

“In no case can the behavior be generalized to the entire Mestalla stadium,” added Valencia, who asked the player for a rectification.

Ancelotti stated this Friday that he did not speak to the athlete. “I don’t know what he said in court, I don’t think anyone knows.”

Despite all this, Vinicius “is very well and happy to play tomorrow” in the 9th round of the league match against Osasuna, concluded Ancelotti.