Vincent Kompany condemns Jose Mourinho over Vinicius Jr racism row

Bayern Munich manager Vincent Kompany has criticised Jose Mourinho for his reaction to Vinicius Jr’s claims of racial abuse during Real Madrid’s Champions League win at Benfica.

Kompany defends Real Madrid star

The former Manchester City captain drew on his own experiences of discrimination to label Mourinho’s comments a "huge mistake".

The dispute stems from Wednesday’s play-off tie, where Real forward Vinicius accused Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni of calling him a "monkey".

Speaking ahead of Bayern’s Bundesliga fixture, Kompany offered a staunch defence of the 24-year-old winger.

"When you watch the action itself and how Vini reacted, that reaction cannot be faked," Kompany said.

"You can see it was an emotional reaction. I don’t see any benefit for him to go to the referee and put all this misery on his shoulders."

Mourinho’s controversial stance

Following the match, Benfica boss Mourinho suggested the Brazilian incited the hostility by not celebrating respectfully.

The former Chelsea and Manchester United manager also argued the Portuguese club could not be racist due to the legacy of club legend Eusebio.

"I told him that when you score a goal like that you just celebrate and walk back," Mourinho stated regarding a post-match conversation with Vinicius.

"There is something wrong because it happens in every stadium. Every stadium that Vinicius plays, something happens. Always."

Kompany took particular issue with his counterpart focusing on the player’s character rather than the severity of the alleged abuse.

Uefa launches investigation

Referee Francois Letexier paused the game for 11 minutes mid-week to activate Fifa’s anti-racism protocols.

Prestianni, who denies the allegations, is now facing an investigation by European governing body Uefa.

Real teammate Kylian Mbappe backed Vinicius’s version of events, stating he also heard the abuse from the 20-year-old Argentine international.