Analyst questions referee over Pulgar red in Flamengo v Bragantino | OneFootball

Pulgar was sent off after assaulting an opponent in Flamengo’s defeat

One of the most controversial moments in Flamengo’s 3-0 loss to Red Bull Bragantino this Thursday (02) was the sending-off of Erick Pulgar. Refereeing analyst Paulo Caravina, although he agreed with the red card decision, criticized the refereeing during the incident.

Caravina pointed to the attitude of referee Fernando Antônio Mendes de Salles, who initially showed only a yellow card to Pulgar. Then, after VAR intervention, the referee changed the decision to a red card, which raised questions about the delay in reaction and the handling of the match.

“I understand referees setting a higher threshold for defensive midfielders. They are usually players who know how to commit fouls and use the limit of an ‘orange’ card. And Pulgar is normally one of those who knows how to go right to the limit without being sent off. But this time he lost control,” Paulo Caravina began, in a column published by Estadão.

“And, although the ball was there to be contested, it is clear that the Flamengo player gives up challenging for it just to strike his opponent’s face with both fists clenched. That constitutes violent conduct, and violent conduct is a red card. If Fernando Mendes wants to keep refereeing in Série A, he cannot need VAR for such an obvious incident as this one,” he wrote.

HOW DID THE INCIDENT HAPPEN?

The incident happened four minutes into the second half, when Flamengo was already trailing 2-0. Pulgar hit Herrera, Red Bull Bragantino’s full-back, in the face away from the ball.

Even with the delay in showing the red card, Fernando Antônio Mendes de Salles detailed the sending-off of Erick Pulgar in the post-match report released by the CBF. The referee stated that the Flamengo player engaged in violent conduct and landed a punch to his opponent’s face away from the ball.

WHAT NOW?

With the sending-off, Pulgar will serve an automatic suspension in Flamengo’s next match. Without the midfielder, the Rubro-Negro will face Santos in the tenth round of the Brasileirão next Sunday (05), at 5:30 p.m. (Brasília time), at the Maracanã.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.