Carlo Ancelotti has expressed his disapproval of the media’s coverage of Vinícius Júnior’s testimony during the trial of three individuals accused of racially insulting him.
Ancelotti mentioned that certain parties are “trying to change the subject” by concentrating on the player.
Vinícius Júnior, the Real Madrid forward, provided his testimony to a Valencia court on Thursday through a video link, recounting the incident that occurred at Valencia’s Mestalla stadium on May 21.
Valencia CF has issued a statement calling on Vinicius to “publicly rectify” his reported testimony that the entire stadium had participated in racist abuse against him, while the Valencia-based newspaper Superdeporte called the player “Pinochius”—a reference to Pinocchio—and said he had “lied to the judge” in their frontpage story on Friday.
“They’re trying to change the subject,” Ancelotti said in a news conference on Friday. “The point is that Vinicius was the victim of racist insults. Whether it was one [fan], ten, a thousand or ten thousand, that doesn’t change the point.
“We had a player who was the victim of racist insults and now there’s a court case. Some of the media want to change the subject. That’s a shame, and it makes me angry.”
“[Vinicius] is fine; he’s motivated as always,” Ancelotti added. “I haven’t spoken to him. I don’t know what he said; nobody knows what he said in court. But he’s fine and happy to play tomorrow.”
Real Madrid is scheduled to take on Osasuna in a LaLiga encounter at the Bernabeu this Saturday. What adds an intriguing dimension is that the Bernabeu is currently being discussed as a prospective venue for the World Cup final.
“This development comes after Spain was chosen as one of the co-hosts for the 2030 edition of the tournament.
“The World Cup final should be played in Madrid,” Ancelotti said. “Madrid is the capital of Spain, and [it should be] at the Bernabeu because the Bernabeu is going to be the best stadium in the world, simple as that.”
The new Bernabeu is nearing completion after a five-year, €900 million redevelopment, which is expected to be completed in December.
“It’s good news for Spain to have a World Cup,” Ancelotti said. “Not all the games, but some of the games. It’s great for Spanish football.”
Madrid will face Osasuna with just one available senior centre-back, Antonio Rüdiger, after David Alaba failed to recover from an abductor injury in time, with Éder Militão out long-term, and Nacho Fernandez suspended.
“Alaba isn’t back to his best so he won’t play tomorrow,” Ancelotti said. “We have three options; two of them are [Aurelien] Tchouameni and [Ferland] Mendy. We’ll adapt well. The defensive work is that of the team, not individuals.”
Heading into the weekend, Real Madrid holds the top position in La Liga, maintaining a one-point lead over the defending champions, Barcelona. Meanwhile, Barcelona is scheduled to play against Granada on Sunday.