A member of Real Madrid’s backroom staff was involved in a confrontation with Benfica president Rui Costa inside the tunnel area at Estadio da Luz, according to Spanish radio Cope, Idman.Biz reports.
The individual - neither a player nor a coach - reportedly exchanged blows with the 53-year-old club chief following a heated atmosphere around the match.
Tensions had already spilled onto the pitch early in the second half, forcing the referee to halt play for several minutes. Shortly after scoring for Real Madrid, Vinicius Jr alerted the officials to racist abuse directed at him from the stands, adding another controversy to an already fractious evening in Lisbon.
The incident comes amid growing scrutiny across European football over crowd behaviour and player safety, with UEFA expected to review reports from the match delegate. The return leg will be played in Madrid on 25 February, where security measures are likely to be increased following the events in Portugal.
