Real Madrid forward Rodrygo has criticised Barcelona representative Mikel Camps after he claimed Vinicius Jr was not a victim of racism against Sevilla. 

Rodrygo said that Camps, the Barcelona board’s deputy spokesperson, was ‘ugly’ and ‘pathetic’ after his now-deleted tweet labelled Vinicius Jr a ‘clown’.

Sevilla ejected a fan and have now banned them for life after Vinicius Jr was subjected to yet more racist abuse in La Liga on Saturday. 

Camps had written: ‘It’s not racism, he deserves a slap for being a clown. What do these unnecessary and meaningless stepovers represent in the centre of the field?’ 

Real Madrid forward Rodrygo has called the behaviour of Mikel Camps ‘ugly’ after his tweet

The Barcelona board member posted a tweet claiming Vinicius Jr was not a victim of racism  

The now-deleted tweet translates as: ‘It’s not racism, he deserves a slap for being a clown. What do these unnecessary and meaningless stepovers represent in the centre of the field?

A man was captured on footage performing a racist ‘monkey’ gesture towards Vinicius

It now forms a backdrop to the El Clasico on Saturday, when Barcelona will host their arch-rivals with just a point separating them. 

Sevilla expelled a spectator and filed a complaint with police after what they called ‘xenophobic and racist behaviour during the club’s 1-1 draw with Madrid on Saturday.

In the statement, the club did not specify what the behaviour was or identify the target. 

Footage appeared to capture a man, and a young fan in separate incidences, making a racist ‘monkey’ gesture towards the player following a confrontation with Sevilla players in the 86th minute at the Sanchez Pizjuan stadium.

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Vinicius Jr commended the Europa League winners for their quick response to the incident. 

He wrote: ‘Congratulations to Sevilla on the quick positioning and penalty in another sad episode for Spanish football.’

‘Unfortunately I have access to a video of another racist at this Saturday’s game, this time carried out by a child. So sad there is no one to educate her. I invest a lot in education in Brazil to train citizens with different attitudes.

‘The face of today’s racist is stamped on websites as like several other times. I hope Spanish authorities do their part and change legislation for once. These people need to be criminally punished too.

‘It would be a great first step to prepare for 2030 World Cup. I am here to help. Sorry to sound repetitive, but it’s episode number 10. And counting…’

Vinicius Jr is likely to feature for his side against Barcelona in El Clasico on Saturday

The Madrid star has been the victim of racist abuse on many occasions in Spanish football 

Vinicius Jr referred to the incident as episode number 10 because he has unfortunately faced racial abuse many times. 

Last season, Vinicius was racially abused by Valencia fans in the form of monkey gestures and chants, leading to an eventual punishment of partial stadium closure for three matches and a fine of (£23,500).

And four people were arrested in Spain in May under suspicion of hanging an effigy of Vinicius off a bridge in January.

Those are just a couple of examples of the endless harrassment Vinicius Jr has experienced because of the colour of his skin.