‘Disgrace’ – Trent Alexander-Arnold slams alleged racist abuse of Vini Junior
Liverpool star Alexander-Arnold was asked about Real Madrid team-mate Vinicius Junior being subjected to alleged racial abuse during Real Madrid’s win over Benfica in the Champions League
Trent Alexander-Arnold(Image: CBS Sports)
Trent Alexander-Arnold condemned the unsavoury incidents which overshadowed Real Madrid’s triumph against Benfica as “a disgrace” after teammate Vinicius Junior was reportedly targeted with racial abuse.
The Real Madrid forward netted the match’s sole goal before receiving a yellow card for his celebration. Matters deteriorated shortly afterwards when, following a confrontation with Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni, Vinicius Junior approached the official, who implemented UEFA procedures and suspended play.
The Brazil star then departed the pitch and the match was paused for 10 minutes before his return, reports the Mirror.
Alexander-Arnold was questioned about the episode post-match on Amazon Prime and responded: “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.
“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 added when questioned about how difficult it was to witness his teammate’s ordeal. “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 questioned about what should occur next, Alexander-Arnold responded: “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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