Vinicius Junior claims La Liga 'now belongs to racists' after abuse from Valencia fans

Vinicius Junior said La Liga “now belongs to racists” after the Real Madrid striker was again the target of opposition supporters during Sunday's match against Valencia.

The match, which Valencia won 1-0 to boost their survival hopes, had to be temporarily stopped after the Brazil forward said he was insulted by a fan behind one of the goals at the Mestalla.

“It wasn't the first time, or the second or the third. Racism is normal in La Liga. The competition thinks it's normal, as does the federation, and the opponents encourage it," Vinicius said on social media.

"The league that once belonged to Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano [Ronaldo] and [Lionel] Messi now belongs to racists ... But I'm strong and I will fight until the end against the racists. Even if far from here.”

Vinicius, 22, has been a target of racist abuse throughout the 2022/23 season and even had an effigy of him hanging from a bridge before January's match against city rivals Atletico Madrid.

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said after the match he had considered replacing the star forward after Vinicius said fans at Mestalla chanted “monkey” toward him. He said Vinicius initially didn't want to continue playing.

“What happened today shouldn’t happen," Ancelotti said. “When a stadium yells ‘monkey’ to a player, and the coach considers taking him out of the field because of that, it means that there is something bad in this league."

A post shared by Vinicius Jr. ⚡️