Vinicius Jr. racial abuse allegations: Benni McCarthy blasts Mourinho for ‘very wrong’ statement

Legendary Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho has found himself on the receiving end owing to the comments he made in the wake of alleged racist abuse Real Madrid attacker Vinicius Jr. received in the UEFA Champions League outing against Benfica in Lisbon.

The Brazil international alleged Gianluca Prestianni had racially abused him, a situation that led to unplanned 15-minute break as Real Madrid players protested the claimed vice.

It led to a massive debate that was extended after the game, with Mourinho having his say on the matter.

What Mourinho said

“Regretful for what? I’ve spoken with both of them. Vinicius says one thing, and Prestianni says another. I don’t want to be ‘red’… and I don’t want to say that I 100% support Prestianni, but I can’t be ‘white’ and say that what Vinicius told me is the truth. I can’t, I don’t know; only that up until the goal, it was a great match,” he told the media.

“I already said it in the flash interview, and I’ve tried to be more balanced than [Alvaro] Arbeloa and Mbappe. It’s not that I want to say Vinicius is a liar, and mine is an incredible kid. They’ve gone down a different path.

“It happens in so many stadiums, and it’s always the same thing… Something’s not working. Vinicius scored a fantastic goal. Why didn’t he celebrate like Eusebio, Pele, or [Alfredo] Di Stefano? Why didn’t he? The game was over with that play,” Mourinho concluded.

Insensitive talk from Mourinho?

Bafana Bafana legend Benni McCarthy insists the tactician was not too wise with his words.

“The situation, he could have handled it better or chosen his words better but emotions got the better of him,” the Kenya coach told BBC World Service.

“I know the statement he made was very wrong. But we’re all human, we all make mistakes.

“When it comes from somebody I know personally and I know how he feels about our continent and our people and the players that play for him, he’s the most stand-up guy that any African player will ever play for.

Former South Africa striker Benni McCarthy says Jose Mourinho should apologise for his "very wrong" comments after the alleged racial abuse of Real Madrid winger Vinicius Jr. pic.twitter.com/CWlougjUcD

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) February 20, 2026

“I think it was an emotional decision, tough, where he maybe made a call and it wasn’t the right call which he will later, hopefully come out and say that he made a mistake because that’s what I would like to think, that’s the kind of man he is,” Benni concluded.