Photo credit: MARCA
Former Paraguayan goalkeeper, Jose Chilavert, has spoken loudly about the Brazil-Spain pre-match press conference given by Vinicius Jr. by calling the Real Madrid star a "fa**ot".
The homophobic slur from the South American shot-stopper came after Vinicius Jr. gave an emotional interview during which he broke down crying as the 23-year-old opened up on the racism he receives regularly during national and international games with Real Madrid and Brazil.
"I just want to play football, but it's hard to move forward. I feel less and less like playing," Vinicius Jr said ahead of the match between the two former world champions. "It never crossed my mind (to leave Spain) because, if I leave Spain, I give the racists exactly what they want.
"So, I will stay because, that way, the racists can continue to see my face more and more. I'm a bold player, I play for Real Madrid and we win a lot of titles and that doesn't sit well with a lot of people."
What did Chilavert say?
Not everyone is a fan of anti-racist action and comments in the press and world, and Chilavert seems to be one of them.
Chilavert's message had provoked many responses on social media, and thankfully, most of them slammed him for what he said, but here is the words from the man himself.
"Bread and Circus," Chilavert said on X.com, formerly Twitter. "The first one to insult and attacks rivals is him. Don't let him be a fa**ot, soccer is for men".
Chilavert mostly played in the South American leagues across his career, generally restricted to Argentina where he played 122 games for San Lorenzo and Velez Sarsfield.
The natural step in world soccer is to head to the top European leagues, which have been the best on the planet for decades, and whilst Chilavert managed to make it, he only lasted five years in total before going back across the Atlantic.
Meanwhile, Vinicius Jr., at the age of 23, has already played 170 games and six years for Real Madrid, winning the UEFA Champions League, when he scored the winning goal, along with two LaLiga titles.
