Mikael Silvestre has claimed that Jose Mourinho has “failed us” over his response to Vinicius Junior’s allegations of racist abuse.

The 25-year-old left the field during Real Madrid’s Champions League play-off in Lisbon on Tuesday after reporting Benfica winger Gianluca Prestianni to the referee.

But Benfica manager Mourinho appeared apportion some blame to Vinicius, telling reporters afterwards: “A stadium where Vinicius plays, something happens, always.”

On Wednesday, former Manchester United defender Silvestre told Sky News that Mourinho was trying to mislead fans with his comments.

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Mourinho’s reaction after Madrid game halted

“In terms of what high level and reputation he has, Jose Mourinho failed us,” said Silvestre. “As an industry, and as human beings, he completely misled everyone – or he tried.

“But we are not foolish – and we know what happened.”

Prestianni, however, has denied making racist comments towards Vinicius, claiming he was “misunderstood” by his opponent.

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Should Mourinho have shown more empathy?

Mourinho also came under fire for claiming Vinicius had provoked the abuse with his celebration after scoring the only goal early in the second half.

The Brazilian danced around the corner flag, an apparent nod to Cameroonian Roger Milla’s iconic World Cup celebration.

Mourinho told Amazon Prime: “I told him, when you score a goal like that, you just celebrate and walk back.”

Silvestre hit back, adding: “For Jose Mourinho to divert and even vilify Vinicius Junior behaviour for celebrating the goal that he did – remembering Roger Milla for Cameroon years ago – it’s not the way a top manager like him should do.

“We expect better, clearly it was bad for everyone, and I hope he’s regretting his comment during the game, and also after during the press conference.”

Read more:
Mourinho sounded like he was victim blaming – Vinicius needs empathy
Real Madrid game against Benfica halted over alleged racial slur

Silvestre is a member on the FIFA Player’s Voice Panel, tasked with advising on on-pitch racism incidents, alongside legends such as George Weah and Didier Drogba.

Prestianni’s response to abuse allegation

In a statement in Portuguese on Instagram, shared by Benfica on social media, Prestianni denied he made any racist comments.

He wrote: “I want to clarify that at no time did I direct racist insults to Vinicius Junior, who regrettably misunderstood what he thought he heard.

“I was never racist with anyone and I regret the threats I received from Real Madrid players.”

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice’s off-the-field legal issues continued on Monday, this time involving the domestic violations allegations against him.

The initial accusations came via Instagram from ex-girlfriend Dacoda Jones, who is also the mother of their two children.

Now, a civil complaint has been filed in Dallas County District Court, where Jones is seeking over $1 million in damages.

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Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice warms up before an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sept. 15, 2024, in Kansas City, Missouri. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann, File)

The lawsuit alleges that, in December 2023, Rice “strangled” Jones at their shared home in Victory Park, Texas, and he “continued to repeatedly assaulted [sic] Decode Jones over the court of their relationship through July 2025,” per The Athletic.

“Rice has grabbed, choked, strangled, pushed, thrown, scratched, hit, and headbutted Ms. Jones, as well as hit her with inanimate objects,” the lawsuit alleges. “Additionally, he has engaged in other violent and abusive behaviors towards Ms. Jones, including throwing objects, destroying property, punching walls, and breaking furniture, as well as locking her out in the middle of the night. Many of these behaviors occurred while Ms. Jones was pregnant.”

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The Chiefs and the NFL previously acknowledged the allegations against Rice, who just completed his third season in the league.

“The club is aware of the allegations on social media and is in communication with the National Football League,” the Chiefs told Front Office Sports. “We have no further comment at this time.”

While the league reviewed the situation then, it will likely expand that investigation now that the civil complaint has been filed.

Rashee Rice of the Kansas City Chiefs scores a receiving touchdown in front of Malik Hooker #28 of the Dallas Cowboys during the first quarter of a game at AT&T Stadium on Nov. 27, 2025 in Arlington, Texas. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Rice served a six-game suspension to start the 2025 season due to his two third-degree felony charges from a March 2024 crash on a Dallas highway. Rice was charged with collision involving serious bodily injury and racing on a highway causing bodily injury, which he pleaded guilty to last month. 

As part of Rice’s plea agreement, he received five-year deferred probation and 30 days in jail as a condition of the probation. 

Rice’s jail time is said to be flexible, according to the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office.

This new lawsuit could impact Rice’s five-year probation for the street-racing incident.

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (4) before an NFL game between the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs on Sept. 5, 2024 at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. (Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

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Rice played eight games for the Chiefs this season, racking up 571 yards on 53 receptions with five touchdowns after returning from his suspension.

Rice suffered a season-ending knee injury four games into the 2024 season after a successful rookie campaign in 2023, where he had 938 yards on 79 catches with seven touchdowns on the way to helping Kansas City win the Super Bowl that year.

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A Long Island man was charged with attempted murder after he allegedly shot a victim, reported by local outlets to be his sister, in the face with a crossbow.

Samy Sedhom, 21, is the suspect in the alleged Feb. 13 crime, according to the Nassau County Police Department in New York. 

“According to detectives, officers responded to a West Avenue residence for an aided case. Upon arrival, officers located a 28-year-old female bleeding from a laceration on the right side of her face,” said a Monday release.

The release says police determined that Sedhom shot the victim, reportedly his sister, with a crossbow, adding that he was taken into custody without incident.

Mugshot of Long Island man Samy Sedhom, arrested for allegedly shooting a victim with a crossbow on Feb. 13, 2026.  (Nassau County Police Department)

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The victim was taken to a local hospital and is in stable condition.

Sedhom was charged with second-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault, fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, first-degree tampering with evidence and first-degree stalking.

The attempted murder charge carries a possible 25-year prison sentence if Sedhom is convicted.

A photo of a crossbow allegedly used by Samy Sedhom to shoot a victim in the face in February 2026.  (Nassua County Police Department)

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Court records show that he had his first appearance Wednesday, where he pleaded not guilty and was remanded without bail. A temporary order of protection for the victim was also levied. 

KABC reported that Sedhom attempted to shoot the victim as she was entering the garage after returning from the gym. According to that report, police found an arrow stuck in the wall of the garage. They also reportedly searched his room and found a box matching the crossbow, a Katana samurai sword and a computer, which were all seized.

Authorities arrested Vito Dambrosio outside his family’s Long Island deli after he was found in the parking lot covered in blood in New York on Nov. 4, 2025, according to FOX 5. (FOX 5)

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As of Wednesday, Sedhom’s name did not appear on the Nassau County jail roster.

Fox News Digital reached out to attorney Timothy Naples of the Legal Aid Society of Nassau County, who is representing Sedhom.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Wednesday pushed back on a reporter who asked for examples of when the president had been “falsely called racist.”

“Yesterday, in his statement about Jesse Jackson, the president said ‘despite the fact that I’m falsely and consistently called a racist by the scoundrels and lunatics and the radical left Democrats all, it was always my pleasure to help Jesse along the way.’ Where or when does the president believe he’s been falsely called racist?” the reporter asked.

Leavitt responded to the reporter in disbelief and asked if he was “kidding,” to which the reporter replied that he was not.

“I will pull you [a] plethora of examples. I’m going to get my team in that room to start, going through the Internet of radical Democrats throughout the years and who have accused this president falsely of being a racist. And I’m sure there’s many people in this room and on network television across the country who have accused him of the same. In fact, I know that because I’ve seen it with my own eyes,” Leavitt said.

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White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a news briefing in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House on Feb. 18, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The press secretary noted that the president was scheduled on Wednesday to hold an event marking Black History Month. Additionally, she listed a number of policy accomplishments aimed at benefiting both the Black community and Americans as a whole, such as the administration’s commitment to funding Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and the establishment of Trump accounts.

“So, there is a lot this president has done for all Americans, regardless of race, and he has absolutely been falsely called and smeared as a racist. And I’m happy to provide you those receipts, and we gladly will right after this briefing,” Leavitt added.

Donald Trump and Jesse Jackson attend Tyson-Spinks Boxing Match on June 27, 1988, at the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. (Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)

TRUMP REMEMBERS JESSE JACKSON AS ‘GOOD MAN,’ ‘FORCE OF NATURE’

The reporter was referring to President Donald Trump‘s post regarding the death of Reverend Jesse Jackson, who died on Tuesday at the age of 84. The president, who posted several pictures of himself with Jackson, remembered the late reverend as a “good man with lots of personality, grit and ‘street smarts'” before making the remarks about being falsely labeled as a racist.

Trump noted that he supported and “provided office space” for Jackson and the reverend’s civil rights organization, the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. Additionally, Trump said that he had responded to Jackson’s “request for help getting criminal justice reform passed and signed, when no other president would even try.” The president also touted his own work to secure long-term funding for HBCUs.

“Jesse was a force of nature like few others before him,” Trump said before seemingly taking a swipe at the reverend over his support of former President Barack Obama‘s candidacy.

Donald Trump and The Reverend Jesse Jackson with singers from the hotel lounge act at the Tyson vs Holmes pre-fight party at Trump Plaza Casino Hotel in Atlantic City, N.J., Jan. 22, 1988.  (Jeffrey Asher/ Getty Images)

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“He loved his family greatly, and to them I send my deepest sympathies and condolences. Jesse will be missed!” Trump added.

The president has often faced accusations of racism from prominent Democrats, including his most recent predecessor, former President Joe Biden. Trump has long pushed back against the notion, highlighting his relationships with prominent Black figures during his celebrity days and his policy moves during his time as president.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., drew mockery from both sides of the aisle after New York Times reporter Kellen Browning posted on X Monday that the congresswoman had called him to respond to backlash over her comments at the Munich Security Conference over the weekend.

“AOC came to Munich to warn about the far-right. Coverage focused on 2028 & verbal missteps,” Browning wrote. “She gave me a call.”

The reporter’s post linked to his Monday article on Ocasio-Cortez’s visit to Germany, titled, “After First Big Overseas Trip, Ocasio-Cortez Expresses Frustrations,” in which the congresswoman argued that “Everybody’s got this story wrong.”

After speaking at the security conference over the weekend, Ocasio-Cortez was mocked for multiple statements she made about Taiwan, as well as for saying Venezuela was below the equator.

AOC’S MUNICH ‘STUMBLES’ DRAW CRITICISM FROM LIBERAL CRITICS ADMITTING COMMENTS WERE ‘NOT GREAT’

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., prepares to speak during a rally for immigration provisions to be included in the Build Back Better Act outside the U.S. Capitol Dec. 7, 2021, in Washington, D.C.  (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

“Everyone’s got this story wrong, that this is about me running for president,” she told the Times. “I could give — whatever, about that, to be honest.”

Users on X responded swiftly, accusing the congresswoman of attempting to reshape the narrative after facing widespread criticism for her comments at the conference.

“NYTs reporter doing his best to spin AOC’s awful performance,” wrote RedState contributor Bonchie. “But when you go to Munich to a global security conference, you should probably expect to be asked about global security issues.”

Noah Pollak, senior advisor for the Department of Education, tore into Ocasio-Cortez for “speaking in dumb slogans, even when she’s trying to clean up the mess she made by speaking in dumb slogans.”

Journalist Paul D. Thacker satirized Browning’s post and described his article in the Times as a “rehab story” to make the congresswoman “look better.”

AOC, OTHER 2028 DEMOCRATIC HOPEFULS CALLED OUT FOR ‘SLIMING’ AMERICA DURING MUNICH CONFERENCE

“Some guy named Kellen is running a PR campaign for AOC’s presidential strategy while saying he’s a reporter,” wrote Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell. “Pro tip, Kellen: if you use the phrase far-right then AOC is far-left.”

OutKick writer Ian Miller joked it was “pretty awesome” that Ocasio-Cortez “realized her performance in Munich was such an incompetent disaster that she called up a friendly left wing media outlet to do damage control.”

Ocasio-Cortez’s office did not immediately return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Conservatives weren’t the only ones to roast Browning’s post, with former CNN journalist Chris Cilliza responding, “Clean up on aisle AOC.”

Former Democratic advisor Dan Turrentine said it was a “horrible idea” for Ocasio-Cortez to reach out to Browning in an attempt to smooth over the backlash she’s received.

“It’s now getting to the point where the kind of cover-up is worse than the initial crime,” he argued on “The Huddle” podcast Tuesday. “Start with who she called. She called The New York Times, right? We talked about how her brand is social media savvy. She’s young, she constantly is online, kind of giving and taking and just in the game, and next to Gavin Newsom, it’s who people said… gets this modern world better than anyone else.”

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., talks with reporters outside the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 11, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

“To argue that, basically, it’s unfair that people are taking clips and sending them around in short snippets, like, ‘Duh!’ Like it’s pathetic and embarrassing for her to make this kind of whining argument … when you’re calling card is that you’re kind of the party queen of social media,” Turrentine continued. “So I don’t understand what she was doing.”

Turrentine published a Substack post about Ocasio-Cortez running to the Times as well. He said the move was “off brand, unlikely to reach core allies, and was talking into the wind to people who already are skeptical” of her.

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The Free Press’ Peter Savodnik, said, “This is embarrassing. Is The Times running point for AOC?” 

National Review editor Luther R. Abel wrote in response to Browning’s post that AOC gave the reporter a call because she thinks “you’re her PR firm.”

The New York Times did not immediately return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Journalist Rachael Bade said the “NYT appeal” by Ocasio-Cortez seemed “pretty whiny & only gave her critics more fodder.”

Some of her fellow Democratic allies defended the congresswoman, including Gov. JB Pritzker, who reacted to Browning’s post in defense of Ocasio-Cortez.

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“AOC warned that democracy is under attack. She’s right. Treating that like partisan politics is a moral failure,” Pritzker wrote.