MADRID (AP) — Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was disappointed with José Mourinho's criticism of teammate Vinícius Júnior for accusing Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni of racism last week.

Courtois commented on Tuesday, a day before Madrid hosted Benfica in their Champions League playoffs second leg. Madrid's 1-0 win in Lisbon last week was overshadowed by Vinícius' allegation that Prestianni called him “monkey” after the Brazil forward scored and celebrated by the Benfica corner flag.

Prestianni denied racially insulting Vinícius while confronting him with his shirt over his mouth but was provisionally suspended for one match by UEFA on Monday and will not play Wednesday's match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. He and Mourinho, who is also suspended after being sent off late in the game for referee dissent, still traveled to Madrid.

Mourinho, a former Madrid coach, said after last week's match that Vinícius shouldn't have provoked Benfica fans by dancing in front of the Benfica flag to celebrate his second-half winner. The coach suggested that something always happens in stadiums where Vinícius plays.

Courtois said it wasn't right to use Vinícius' celebration to justify the alleged act of racism.

“Mourinho is Mourinho, and as a coach he will defend his club and what his player told him,” Courtois said. “The only thing that disappoints me is that he used Viní's celebration. He didn't do anything wrong. He celebrated like many of our rivals have, because when they score on us, the euphoria is double or triple. But it’s over, we have to move on.”

Mourinho did not speak in Benfica's news conference at the Bernabeu on Tuesday; an assistant spoke instead.

Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany was among those who also criticized Mourinho for attacking Vinícius after last week's match.

Benfica has defended Prestianni, saying the Argentine player was the victim of a “defamation campaign.” It lamented that he was provisionally suspended by UEFA while an investigation remained open.

Madrid was fully behind Vinícius and coach Álvaro Arbeloa said on Tuesday that UEFA had a chance to do more against racism.

“We are facing a great opportunity to make a significant step forward in the fight against racism,” he said. "UEFA has always been a strong advocate in the fight against racism, and now they have the opportunity not to leave it as just a slogan or a nice banner before matches. I hope they seize this opportunity.”

Arbeloa added Vinícius, who has five goals in his last four matches, was “very motivated” for Wednesday's match.

“Vini has always shown great courage and character,” Arbeloa said. "I don't know how anyone else in his situation would react. He has always done so bravely, showing tremendous personality. That has always been his response and it always will be because he is a fighter. Tomorrow he will come out to fight and play a great match, showing that he is one of the best players on the planet.”

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The Winter Paralympics celebrate its 50th anniversary at Milan Cortina, where Ukraine is expected to boycott the opening ceremony as the Russian flag and national anthem make a return to the global sports stage.

Five decades after some 200 athletes competed in two sports at the inaugural 1976 Ornskoldsvik Winter Paralympics in Sweden, more than 600 athletes are expected to participate across six sports in Italy from March 6-15.

The opening ceremony on March 6 at Arena di Verona marks the first time a Paralympic ceremony is held at a UNESCO World Heritage site. The ancient Arena has been retrofitted with new wheelchair ramps and accessible restrooms along with other safety upgrades.

The closing ceremony on March 15 is at the renovated Cortina Curling Stadium, a former venue of the 1956 Winter Olympics.

The Winter Paralympics come 20 years after Italy hosted the first time in Turin.

China staged the Paralympics four years ago in Beijing and set a medals record at a single Winter Games of 61. China is favored to dominate again.

Russian flag returns

The Russian flag hasn’t been flown at the Paralympics since the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, while the national anthem has not been heard at any Olympics or Paralympics since the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Games.

It could be the first time in four years the anthem is played at any major global sporting event. Russian athletes were initially banned because of the state-sponsored doping program, and the sanctions continued after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Ukraine’s sports minister has said the nation will not be present at the opening ceremony.

"We will not take part in any other official Paralympic events,” sports minister Matvii Bidnyi said in a social media post after the IPC announced the return of the Russian flag and anthem on Feb. 18.

The few allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes have been competing as individual neutral athletes without their flag, anthem or team colors.

Top athletes

Oksana Masters, born in Ukraine with radiation-induced birth defects, is the most decorated American Winter Paralympian with 14 medals to go along with five Summer Paralympic medals. In Para biathlon and Para cross-country skiing, Masters became the first American to win seven medals — in seven events — at a single Paralympics in Beijing.

Fellow American Brenna Huckaby, whose right leg was amputated at 14, will try to win her fifth and sixth medals in Para snowboarding. Huckaby has three golds and a bronze.

Italian Giacomo Bertagnolli, visually impaired, will have a chance to add to his four Paralympic gold medals and 10 world titles while competing at home in all five Para alpine skiing events.

Norway’s Jesper Pedersen, born with spina bifida, won four of the five medal events in Para alpine skiing in Beijing and is set to fight for medals again in Italy.

Wang Haitao won gold in wheelchair curling in PyeongChang in 2018 and Beijing, becoming only the second captain to win back-to-back Paralympic titles after Canada’s Jim Armstrong. Wang will try to become the first three-time Paralympic champion in the sport.

Ukrainian Oleksandra Kononova, who has a stunted right arm, won three gold medals in Para biathlon and Para cross-country skiing as a 19-year-old in Vancouver in 2010. She's won two more Paralympic titles and over a dozen world titles since then despite injuries.

The six sports

— Para alpine skiing: Introduced at the first Winter Paralympics in 1976, it includes five events — slalom, giant slalom, super-G, downhill and super combined. Athletes use monoskis, outriggers or audio transmission systems for vision impaired competitors.

— Para biathlon: Combines the strength and endurance of cross-country skiing with the precision and composure of target shooting. Athletes compete on a variable-length ski course across three classes: Vision impaired, standing and sitting.

— Para cross-country skiing: Five events divided into three categories: Standing, sitting (for skiers on a sit-ski) and vision impaired (for skiers who compete with a guide skier).

— Para ice hockey: Debuted at Lillehammer in 1994. Since 2010, it has been a mixed-gender sport. It is played by athletes with a physical disability in their lower limbs. Players use sledges made of aluminium or steel, and use two blades and two sticks to push themselves and handle the puck.

— Para snowboard: Debuted in Sochi in 2014 as part of the alpine skiing program. Two events in three categories for men and one for women depending on the disability.

— Wheelchair curling: Celebrating its 20th anniversary. Players can choose whether to throw the stone alone or with a teammate who holds the wheelchair steady. Athletes can use an extender to add speed and direction. For the first time the program will feature a mixed team event and a pairs competition.

How to watch

Peacock will be the U.S. streaming home of the Milan Cortina Paralympics. The service will stream every sport and event and will feature all linear programming, full-event replays, originals, clips and more.

Daily highlights will be available on NBC, NBCUniversal’s digital platforms and Versant’s CNBC and USA Network.

The Eastern time zone in the U.S. is six hours behind Milan and Cortina.

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AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

MADRID (AP) — Vinícius Júnior is set to face Gianluca Prestianni again in the Champions League, just a week after accusing the Benfica player of racially insulting him.

Real Madrid and Benfica will meet Wednesday in the second leg of the knockout round of the Champions League. Madrid won the first match in Lisbon last Tuesday with Vinícius scoring a second-half winner for a 1-0 victory.

The game was halted for nearly 10 minutes after the Brazil forward scored and celebrated by the Benfica corner flag, upsetting local fans and players. After being confronted by Prestianni, Vinícius accused the Argentine player of calling him “monkey.” Prestianni has denied racially insulting Vinícius.

The anti-racism protocol was activated but no further action was taken during the match as there was no evidence against Prestianni, who covered his mouth with his shirt while talking to Vinícius. The Madrid forward was shown a yellow card after his celebration.

UEFA opened an investigation into what happened but there had been no ruling made as of Monday, meaning both players are available to play the return match on Wednesday at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

Vinícius scored Madrid's goal in the team's 2-1 loss at Osasuna on Saturday. Prestianni did not play in Benfica's 3-0 win over AVS on Saturday because of a yellow card suspension.

Missing for Benfica on Wednesday will be coach José Mourinho, who was sent off late in the first leg for complaining with the referee. The former Madrid coach criticized Vinícius for celebrating his goal by the Benfica flag.

Surprising Bodø/Glimt

On Tuesday, small Norwegian club Bodø/Glimt will look to keep its surprising run going when it takes a two-goal advantage for the second leg at Inter Milan.

The first-leg win followed up back-to-back wins against Manchester City and Atletico Madrid in the league phase.

Inter, last year’s Champions League runner-up, will hope to overcome the first-match deficit and show that the loss in Norway was a fluke amid a run of seven wins in eight games across all competitions.

“Sometimes we produce our best in big matches, other times we don’t,” Inter defender Manuel Akanji said. “But there aren’t two different versions of Inter. Yes, we lost to Bodø/Glimt last time out in the Champions League, but we’re still the same team capable of great things.”

Juve's crisis

Another Italian club who will need a comeback will be Juventus when it hosts Galatasaray on Wednesday after losing 5-2 in the first leg in Turkey.

Juventus has been struggling, though, and is coming off a 2-0 loss at home to Como that hurt its hopes of Champions League qualification next season. It was Juventus’ third straight defeat across all competitions and its fifth game in a row without a win.

Focused PSG

Both defending European champion Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco won in the French league this weekend ahead of their second leg in Paris on Wednesday. Monaco's 3-2 victory over Lens allowed PSG to regain the French league lead with a 3-0 win against Metz.

PSG came back from two goals down against Monaco to win the first leg 3-2. Désiré Doue, who scored twice against Monaco, also found the net in the win against Metz.

Atletico Madrid rebounds

Atletico squandered a two-goal lead and conceded late in a 3-3 draw in its first-leg at Club Brugge for its second game without a win in all competitions.

Diego Simeone's team rebounded ahead of Tuesday's return match by defeating Espanyol 4-2 in the Spanish league on Saturday. Ademola Lookman scored again, earning his fourth goal in six matches since being signed by Atletico.

“It's always important to win ahead of an important match like the one we have on Tuesday,” Simeone said.

Other matchups

Also Tuesday, Newcastle will be in control when it hosts Qarabag defending a 6-1 first-leg win, while Bayer Leverkusen will bring home a 2-0 lead from its win at Olympiacos. Borussia Dortmund also won 2-0 in the first leg against Atalanta ahead of the return game in Italy.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer