Trent Alexander-Arnold slams alleged racist abuse of Vinicius Jr – ‘A disgrace’

Real Madrid’s victory over Benfica in the Champions League was overshadowed by a report of alleged racist abuse towards Vinicius Junior with Trent Alexander-Arnold hitting out after the game

Trent Alexander-Arnold branded the unsavoury scenes which marred Real Madrid’s victory over Benfica “a disgrace” after Vinicius Junior was subjected to alleged racial abuse.

The Real Madrid attacker scored the only goal of the game before being booked for his celebrations. Things turned sour soon after when, following an exchange with Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni, Vinicius Junior approached the referee, who followed UEFA protocols and halted the game.

The Brazil international subsequently left the field of play and the game was halted for 10 minutes before he returned.

Alexander-Arnold was asked about the incident after the game on Amazon Prime and replied: “I can’t comment too much on it because there’s probably an ongoing investigation, so I’m not sure I can comment on it too much. But I think what’s happened tonight is a disgrace to football. It’s overshadowed the performance, especially after such an amazing goal.

READ MORE: Vinicius Jr alleges racist abuse as Benfica vs Real Madrid suspendedREAD MORE: Jose Mourinho SENT OFF after furious outburst in Real Madrid v Benfica clash

“Vini’s been subjected to this a few times throughout his career and for it to happen tonight and ruin the night for us as a team is a disgrace. Like I said, it’s a disgrace to football. There’s no place for it in football or society. It’s disgusting.”

“It’s upsetting,” Alexander-Arnold continued when he was asked how hard it was to witness what his team-mate went through.

“We as people, we come here to do a job, we enjoy what we do. When something like that happens, it takes the fun out of the game and ruins the night for all of us. We stick together as a team, we dug deep and got the win. Most of all, I think we’re all proud of the way we handled it.”

When he was asked what should happen next, Alexander-Arnold said: “That is out of my hands. I think it is a difficult situation. The referee said he did say whatever he did say with his shirt over his mouth. Hopefully there is justice involved with whatever happens.”

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