Atletico Madrid fans publicly HANG an effigy of Vinicius Jr off a bridge on the eve of their derby
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The Atlético de Madrid fans have done their best to make their feelings known to the Real Madrid fans ahead of tonight’s Copa del Rey clash.
The city rivals will meet for the 231st time later tonight when they battle it out at the Bernabéu stadium to secure a place in the cup semi-final.
Atlético fans seem to have hung an effigy of Vinicius Jr on one of the bridges in the Spanish capital before the derby. They accompanied the inflatable doll with a banner that reads: ‘Madrid hates Real Madrid’.
Atlético fans appear to have hung an effigy of Vinicius on one of the city’s bridges (above)
The Brazilian striker was previously attacked by Atlético fans, who reportedly called him a ‘monkey’, during their match at the Civitas Metropolitano on September 18, 2022.
LaLiga has issued a statement in which it says that it “strongly condemns the acts of hate and intimidation against Vinicius Jr” after the incident. They have also promised to ‘investigate’ the matter and ‘condemn’ those responsible.
His statement read: ‘LaLiga strongly condemns the acts of hate and intimidation against Vinicius Jr. LaLiga, as in the past, will press for an investigation of the matter by the relevant state security forces and bodies, seeking the conviction of the perpetrators. responsible and requesting the most severe. sentences.’
A close-up of Vinicius Jr’s effigy was posted on the Zona Madrid Twitter account
The Brazilian striker was previously attacked by Atlético fans, who reportedly called him a ‘monkey’, during their match at the Civitas Metropolitano on September 18, 2022.
Vinicius didn’t score in Real Madrid’s 2-1 win that night, but danced alongside Rodrygo after his compatriot scored the opener.
Video footage appeared to show Atlético fans directing racist insults at Vinicius Jr from the stands as he celebrated with his teammate.
The followers were said to make monkey chants and imitate the actions of the animals.
Vinicius Jr was also the target of racist insults during his clash with Real Valladolid in December 2022.
Video footage of the Brazil international walking off the pitch during Madrid’s 2-0 win emerged as he was replaced by Luka Modric just two minutes before time.
An object was thrown at Vinicius Jr when he was passing the Real Valladolid fans. The striker responded by kicking him into the crowd.
LaLiga has issued a statement in which it says that it “strongly condemns the acts of hate and intimidation against Vinicius Jr” after the incident.
Vinicius celebrates Real’s first goal scored by Rodrygo (left) during his team’s 2-1 victory in September; there is no suggestion that the Atlético fans pictured above racially abused Vinicius or were involved in hanging the effigy.
This led to a vocal reaction from fans and monkey chants could be heard in the video as Vinicius Jr continued to walk towards the Madrid bench.
Shortly after the incident, LaLiga declared that it had filed complaints for hate crimes before the “competent judicial, administrative and sports bodies.”
They issued the following statement: ‘A criminal complaint for hate crimes has been filed in the Peace Courts of Valladolid, supported by audiovisual evidence collected in the investigation carried out through images and audio clips published in open sources.
Vinicius was also the target of vile racist insults during his clash with Real Valladolid in 2022.
“LaLiga has also asked the Justices of the Peace of Valladolid to forward the complaint to the Hate Crimes Prosecutor’s Office so that they may participate in the case.”
In the statement, the league said it would increase efforts to “eradicate any type of violence, racism or xenophobia inside and outside the stadiums.”
“The number of LaLiga integrity officers present at matches where there is a risk of racist insults will be increased, in order to maximize the detection and identification of this type of conduct, which has no place in sport,” added the highest Spanish category.
‘Furthermore, in stadiums where there is a risk of possible racist behavior in the stands, public address messages and billboards will be broadcast around the pitch to combat and condemn racism.’
Carlo Ancelotti’s team will enter tonight’s match with Atlético as favorites given that they are in second place in LaLiga, 10 points ahead of Diego Simeone’s team.
The latest attack on Vinicius Jr occurred on Wednesday night when an inflatable doll wearing the striker’s shirt was hung from the neck of a bridge in the Spanish capital.
The doll was accompanied by a red and white banner reading: ‘Madrid hates Real’ ahead of tonight’s Copa del Ray clash between Atlético and Real Madrid.
The match between the two Spanish rivals will be played at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid and will begin at 3:00 p.m.
Vinicius Jr will be looking to increase his goal tally during the game as he has found the back of the net 11 times for Real Madrid this season.
Carlo Ancelotti’s team will enter tonight’s game as favorites given that they are in second place in LaLiga, 10 points ahead of Diego Simeone’s team.