The hate attacks against Vinicius Junior are a problem of Spanish football and must be dealt with, his Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said on Tuesday.

Vinicius, the Brazilian forward, has been subjected to hate attacks since he arrived in Spain in 2018. The most recent were on Sunday at a La Liga game in Mallorca. Last month, his effigy hung off a bridge in Madrid before the Derby against Atletico Madrid.

“The question I ask is this: What does Vinicius have to defend himself against? What do his teammates have to defend themselves against?” Ancelotti said here on Tuesday, on the eve of Real Madrid’s Club World Cup semi-final against Egypt’s Al Ahly.

“Is Vinicius the problem? It seems like the problem is Vinicius, but the problem is what happens around him. Period.

“It is a problem of Spanish football. I am a part of Spanish football and I think it’s a problem that we have to solve. Because it seems that Vinicius is the culprit, but he is being the victim of something that I don’t understand.”

Vinicius has been outspoken about the insults and often complained on social media of how he’s been treated.

The 22-year-old was also targeted because of his dances while celebrating goals, and recently his teammates called attention to the high number of fouls he was receiving in games.

“Vinícius is an incredible person, with great values,” teammate Federico Valverde said. “He is different than most on the field, he enjoys football in his own way. I don’t think the rival fans realise that he could be the son of anyone who is in the stands. People need to be responsible for what they do.”