Gary Lineker has taken issue with Jose Mourinho’s remarks following an alleged racist incident involving Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior and Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni. The episode occurred during Madrid’s Champions League play-off first-leg victory in Portugal on Tuesday evening.
Referee Francois Letexier paused the match for 10 minutes after Vinicius reported the incident to him as he made his way to the halfway line. Vinicius had netted the match’s winning goal just moments earlier, celebrating in the corner with his teammates and subsequently receiving a yellow card.
Post-match, Benfica manager Mourinho suggested that Vinicius’ celebration was disrespectful, citing the club’s iconic striker Eusebio as evidence that Benfica is not a racist club. When questioned if the forward had incited the crowd, he responded, “Yes, I believe so.
“It should be the crazy moment of the game, an amazing goal. Unfortunately, [he was] not just happy to score that astonishing goal. When you score a goal like that, you celebrate in a respectful way.”
He further commented: “I told [Vinicius], when you score a goal like that, you just celebrate and walk back. When he was arguing about racism, I told him the biggest person in the history of this club [Eusebio] was black.
“This club, the last thing that it is, is racist. If in his mind there was something in relation to that, this is Benfica. They [Vinicius and Prestianni] told me different things. But I don’t believe in one or another. I want to be independent.”
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LISBON, PORTUGAL – FEBRUARY 17: Vinicius Junior of Real Madrid speaks to Jose Mourinho, Head Coach of Benfica, after a clash with Gianluca Prestianni during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Knockout Play-off First Leg match between SL Benfica and Real Madrid C.F. at Estadio do SL Benfica on February 17, 2026 in Lisbon, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images) (Image: Vinicius Junior and Jose Mourinho spoke on the pitch during the pause in play)
Mourinho’s remarks provoked substantial condemnation, with Lineker amongst the latest to denounce the former Chelsea and Manchester United boss. Speaking on the Rest is Football podcast, he said: “I would say two things. One, why would Vinicius Junior and Mbappe lie? This was a moment of joy for them to savour.
“It makes no sense, does it? To turn that into a moment of accusation and despair. Secondly, why, unless you are trying to smother your words, would you hide behind your shirt? Either way, once again, racism discolours the beautiful game.
“I would argue, though, that this goes beyond football. We live in a time where division is sown, where we’re turned against each other, whether it be the colour of our skin, race or religion.”
“It comes from the top, we see it everywhere. The last couple of weeks, we’ve seen the President of the United States post an image of the former President and his wife as monkeys. Now we’re witnessing accusations of something similar on a football pitch.
Jose Mourinho is sent off during Benfica’s defeat to Real Madrid (Image: Getty)
“The post-match tribalism was also depressing. Jose Mourinho has the gall to blame Vinicius for celebrating his goal. Basically saying he had it coming. I’m sorry but that is gaslighting. Players celebrate goals. Should they think in the moment, ‘If I celebrate, I’d provoke racial abuse?’ Of course not. It’s ludicrous and it’s wrong, I would say, to put the blame on Vinicius.
“Mourinho went on to say that the club’s greatest ever player was black, the great Eusebio, he’s right, of course, he was. But it did feel a little bit like those ‘oh one of my mates is black’ moments. This was not about Benfica, even though images of two young fans were seen to be making monkey gestures at Madrid players.
“This was not a moment for tribalism. It should’ve been a moment where all of football came together. Whether it’s proved that there was racist abuse or not remains to be seen, I imagine it will be very difficult.”
He added: “I’ll be accused, probably, not for the first time along with others, for being ‘woke’, but I think it’s hugely important that it’s not just black players that speak out. It needs to come from us.
“It seems so odd and inhumane that caring and kindness is seen as a flaw and something to be despised. I genuinely believe that the vast majority of fans inside the Stadium of Light were not prejudice against the colour of someone’s skin and I’d also say that 99% of professional footballers are genuinely not in the slightest bit racist.”
“In fact, the multicultural harmony of dressing rooms are an example to the world, they make me proud of our sport. Alas, there’ll always be the odd exception that ruins it for everyone. What happened on Tuesday night was as distressing as it was depressing.
“Let’s just remember who the victim was and that we remain on the right side. It’s not the first time we’ve spoke of these issues and it won’t be the last I suspect. I think the way it turned against Vinicius was very sad.”