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By Seyi Babalola
In the wake of racist claims against Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni, FIFA president Gianni Infantino has urged that players who cover their mouths while speaking to opponents be sent off.
Argentina’s Prestianni was accused of racially abusing Real Madrid striker Vinicius Junior during a Champions League encounter last month, while hiding his lips with his shirt.
The issue was brought up at Saturday’s meeting of the International Football Association Board (IFAB).
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“If a player covers his mouth and says something, and this has a racist consequence, then he has to be sent off, obviously,” Infantino told Sky News.
“There must be a presumption that he has said something he shouldn’t have said, otherwise he wouldn’t have had to cover his mouth.
“I simply do not understand — if you don’t have something to hide, you don’t hide your mouth when you say something. That’s it, as simple as that.
“And these are actions that we can take and we have to take in order to be serious about our fight against racism.”
