Sport Lisboa e Benfica plays this Monday against Gil Vicente FC, but the preview was marked mainly by disciplinary and media themes. José Mourinho opened the conference with the case involving Gianluca Prestianni, defending the need for caution until there is a definitive decision. “I vehemently repudiate any type of discrimination, prejudice and ignorance. I advise some people to read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights”, he stated, then underlining the presumption of innocence: “If my player didn’t respect these principles, his career with me and at a club like Benfica will come to an end. But I have to put a lot of ‘ifs’ in front of him”. The coach also criticized the way in which the player was preventively removed by UEFA: “They went in a direction where the ‘if’ that should have been placed was not included.”
The coach also addressed the controversial exchange of public positions with Álvaro Arbeloa after the matches against Real Madrid, reiterating the intention of balance: “I want to be impartial, neither defending mine nor attacking the other. I don’t want to wear the red or the white shirt.” When asked about Sidny Lopes Cabral’s request for a shirt from Vinícius Júnior, he considered that it was a customary gesture in football, although inappropriate for the moment: “It is not criticizable, it is a common practice among players, especially in important games, but it would be avoidable due to the context”.
On the sporting front, Mourinho revealed that Bruma and Heorhii Sudakov remain unavailable and explained Dodi Lukebakio’s management. “The team won’t be great because we were eliminated from the Champions League, but they know what they did. Sudakov was in Madrid just for an emergency and Lukebakio doesn’t play again at first”, he said, adding that the group maintains confidence despite the European elimination. The coach took the opportunity to remember the recent competitive evolution: “What credit do you have for in a few months we went from a heavy defeat against Qarabağ FK to three games against Real Madrid like we played?”
In the final part, praised the opponent and warned of difficulties in Barcelos, although without going too deep into the topic: he considered that Gil Vicente has had “an extraordinary campaign” and presents consistent structural work, expecting a complicated game “from the opponent”.
On the agile side, Cesar Peixoto refused to develop Benfica’s analysis and showed dissatisfaction with the media focus given to the opponent. “I’ll just say about Benfica that they have an excellent coach. I expect four good teams on the field: Gil Vicente, Benfica, refereeing and VAR”, he said, adding: “A game between third and fifth placed deserved more respect and more questions about us”.
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