Vinicius Jr is shown a RED CARD for striking Hugo Duro after claiming he was racially abused

Vinicius Jr. was sent away during Real Madrid’s 1-0 defeat to Valencia on Sunday night after being subjected to discriminatory comments from spectators, with Rio Ferdinand criticizing LaLiga authorities for failing to protect the striker.

Carlo Ancelotti’s team went down a goal ten minutes before the break, with Diego Lopez tapping in a well-developed action from the home team.

Madrid then pushed through late in an attempt to score the equaliser, but the game was interrupted for several minutes after the winger claimed to have been racially insulted by spectators behind the goal.

The 22-year-old, who joined the club from Brazilian side Flamengo in 2018, has been subjected to racial abuse several times this season and has previously expressed frustrations towards LaLiga authorities over their lack of action to stamp out the discrimination .

The match was interrupted and the referee came to address the fourth official and coaches on the sidelines before play resumed.

The 22-year-old (centre) was the subject of discriminatory abuse during the match and angrily attacked a spectator who had directed the racist remarks at him

As Madrid chased the game, Vinicius (right) was sent off for punching Valencia striker Hugo Duro during the game

Things took an unsavory turn shortly afterwards when the winger was shown a red card after appearing to hit Hugo Duro after a mele in the penalty area.

Those in the crowd were warned about the tannoy system that play would be suspended if they continued to insult the players.

After the match, the winger posted an Instagram story expressing his dismay at the events that happened during the match.

It wasn’t the first time, not the second, not the third. Racism is normal in La Liga,” he wrote. ‘The competition thinks it’s normal, the federation and the opponents also encourage it. I’m so sorry.’

“The championship that once belonged to Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano and Messi, today belongs to the racists.

“A beautiful nation, which welcomed and loved me, but accepted to export the image of a racist country to the world.

“Sorry to the Spaniards who disagree, but Spain is now known in Brazil as a country of racists. And unfortunately with everything happening on a weekly basis, I have no way to defend.

‘I agree with that. But I am strong and will go to the end against the racists. Even if it’s far from here.’

Former Manchester United defender, Ferdinand, also took to Instagram to criticize LaLiga authorities for failing to protect the young winger.

He wrote on his story: ‘Bro, you need protection…Who protects Vinicius Jr in Spain?

“He gets a red card after being choked to death during the game and being racially insulted…wtf.

“How many times do we have to see this young man subjected to this s***? I see pain, I see disgust, I see he needs help… and the authorities are doing nothing to help him.

“People need to unite and demand more from the authorities who run our game. No one deserves this, yet you allow it.

‘There must be a uniform approach, otherwise it will be swept under the carpet AGAIN.’

Ferdinand then tagged several big players in the story, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappé, Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford and Jude Bellingham, before saying, “Everyone… stand together loud and proud.”

It is the first red card in his career the Brazilian has ever received, but unfortunately it is not the first time he has been abused.

Rio Ferdinand criticized the LaLiga authorities for not protecting Vinicius Jr on his Instagram

And after the game, his manager, Carlo Ancelotti, claimed that he didn’t want to talk about football after the game.

When asked by a reporter what he wanted to speak about, he said:[I want to talk] About what happened here.

‘I think that’s more important. More important than defeat, right? I am calm, but what happened today should not happen. For a stadium to yell “monkey” at a player and for a coach to think about firing him for it… There’s something wrong with this league.

“He didn’t want to continue playing,” the Italian added, when asked what Vinicius Jr told him after the incident. “I told him I didn’t think it was fair, it wasn’t his fault, he wasn’t at fault.

‘He played on and also got a pointless red card. That said, we have a problem.

“Vinícius is one of the best in the world for me. These episodes of racism cannot happen, it was the whole stadium, not just one person, as on other occasions. It must be stopped. And I would say the same if we won 3-0.’

LaLiga filed a complaint with the court in February after Vinicius Jr was racially insulted during Real Madrid’s 1-0 win against Mallorca.

More recently, during Real Madrid’s 2-1 defeat to Barcelona at Camp Nou, spectators targeted the striker, prompting LaLiga to file their eighth complaint with the authorities, while also setting up a special complaint channel that fans can use to report abusers to identify.

It comes after the Brazilian was the subject of racial discrimination several times this season

LaLiga has now lodged eight complaints with authorities after being assaulted more during Real Madrid’s 2-1 defeat to Barcelona in March

Diego Lopez (center) scored the opening goal for the home team on Sunday

In a statement, the league’s governing body condemned the racist abuse towards Vinicius Jr. as ‘unacceptable’.

“In view of the events that took place during the match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, where unacceptable racist behavior was again observed against Vinicius Jr., LaLiga has reported the racist insults to the Barcelona Court of Inquiry.

“This is the eighth complaint filed by LaLiga with the corresponding authorities for racist abuse against Vinicius Jr.”

The winger has scored 23 goals in 53 appearances in all competitions for the Spanish giants.