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RACISM PROBE
Real Madrid clash suspended as fuming Vinicius Jr points out Valencia fan accused of racial abuse to referee
REAL MADRID'S 1-0 defeat to Valencia was temporarily paused when Vinicius Jr accused members of the crowd of racially abusing him.
The Brazilian alerted the referee, before specifically pointing members of the crowd out.
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His team-mates appeared to be fuming with the incident, with many backing Vinicius up.
The match was temporarily halted as the referee attempted to assess the situation - speaking to Vinicius as well as manager Carlo Ancelotti.
Tensions had already been boiling between players on the pitch, with Valencia defender Eray Comert having kicked a stray ball at Vinicius as the winger had attempted to run in behind with the actual ball.
The incident sparked a melee between players from both teams.
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Eventually the game was set to continue with an indirect free-kick, only for Vinicius to take issue with the crowd.
At this point the 22-yeart-old alerted the referee, going right up to the stands to point out the alleged offenders.
Valencia's Jose Gaya attempted to pull Vinicius away from the crowd, but the Real Madrid star was backed up by Karim Benzema, Aurelien Tchouameni, Eder Militao and Lucas Vazquez.
As the officials assessed the situation, Ancelotti spoke to Vinicius.
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The game eventually resumed around nine minutes after the initial stoppage.
After the match entered additional time, players from both teams were involved in another furious confrontation.
Valencia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili was booked for squaring up to Vinicius.
The referee was then advised to view the incident again by VAR.
TV footage showed Vinicius to have struck out at Hugo Duro, after being grabbed around the neck from behind by the Spanish youth international.
After viewing several replays, the referee opted to send Vinicius off, but NOT Duro.
Rudiger then held Vinicius back, with the winger sarcastically applauding the officials and flashing a peace sign to the crowd as he left the field.
You can't play football like this
Carlo Ancelotti
After the match, Ancelotti had strong words to say about the various incidents.
He blasted: "You can't play football like this.
"This is too serious, they throw a ball on the field, they insult Vinicius all the time, and they take the red card from him.
"What are we talking about? We are in 2023, there can be no racism We have to go home."
Vinicius himself then tweeted: "It wasn't the first time, nor the second, nor the third. Racism is normal in La Liga.
"The competition thinks it's normal, the Federation does too and the opponents encourage it. I'm so sorry. The championship that once belonged to Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano and Messi today belongs to racists.
Spain is known as a country of racists
Vinicius Jr
"A beautiful nation, which welcomed me and which I love, but which agreed to export the image of a racist country to the world.
"I'm sorry for the Spaniards who don't agree, but today, in Brazil, Spain is known as a country of racists. And unfortunately, for everything that happens each week, I have no defense.
"I agree. But I am strong and I will go to the end against racists. Even if far from here."
Vinicius has repeatedly been the victim of vile racist abuse in recent seasons.
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He was racially abused by Atletico Madrid fans earlier in this campaign.
While he also danced in front of the crowd after allegedly receiving similar abuse from Mallorca supporters last term.
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