Rui Costa: Palmeiras favoured by refs, Barros calls rival "opportunist" | OneFootball

The atmosphere behind the scenes is heating up on the eve of the classic between São Paulo and Palmeiras. Rui Costa, São Paulo’s football executive, questioned the rival’s recent victories in their latest encounters, suggesting help from the referees. Anderson Barros, Palmeiras’ football director, responded to the accusations and pointed out an opportunistic stance from the São Paulo official.

What did Rui Costa say?

In an interview with ESPN this Thursday, Rui Costa was asked about Abel Ferreira’s statement, who once again mentioned the consequences he felt Palmeiras suffered after a controversial penalty was awarded against São Paulo in the last game at Morumbis, in October 2025.

“It’s always a very important clash. Specifically this weekend, it’s a game that allows us to keep fighting for points, and in that I agree with Palmeiras’ coach. Being the leader now is important, but what matters is being the leader in the 38th round. Our opponent won the last match due to blatant refereeing errors. The fact is, they won. And unfortunately, in these encounters, in different competitions, we have had errors that not rarely favor the opponent,” he stated.

Abel’s statement

“If I had known that the consequence of that game would be what happened, where two or three teams united against Palmeiras, I would have preferred to lose that game,” said Abel, who had previously questioned the lack of penalty calls in favor of his team during a period after the controversial classic.

Additionally, the coach also criticized the suspension of the referees responsible for that match.

Anderson Barros responds to accusations

Anderson Barros, in turn, responded to the director’s remarks through Palmeiras’ official channel. The Palmeiras director saw Rui Costa’s comments about the recent record, in which Palmeiras has the upper hand, as opportunistic and repudiated statements that, according to him, could put pressure on the refereeing on the eve of the match.

“Football no longer allows this kind of stance. Rui Costa needs to understand that football is far beyond this kind of practice that was done in the past. Today, to put a team together, to be able to compete, there are many variables and refereeing is not the most important one. These are professionals who are also looking for their place, who also seek to do their job in the best way possible. I think Rui can’t, nowadays, have this kind of stance, especially before a classic that will happen in 48 hours. I think football is much bigger than that. If we continue with this kind of practice, we will not evolve,” he said.

Barros also spoke about the last classic, which took place in the semifinals of the Campeonato Paulista. On that occasion, Palmeiras won 2-1 and advanced to the final. After the match, Rui Costa spoke out and complained about a penalty not awarded to São Paulo when Palmeiras was leading 1-0. São Paulo was awarded a penalty when already losing 2-0. The call was questioned by Barros, who also recalled an incident against his club in 2022.

“It was a great classic, an extremely hard-fought match, and I think the only mistake was the penalty awarded against Palmeiras. We need to stop this. We can’t keep, every time a team beats another or wins a classic—and Palmeiras has won the last five classics, and that doesn’t take away from São Paulo’s team. It’s just that in those matches we were more competent. That’s football, that’s how football should be. The only mistake in that game was the penalty call. Because for all the other incidents, if we ask refereeing professionals, there’s a big split in their opinions. We need to stop this. That’s not what will make you win or lose a game, or a championship,” he declared.

“I do think it’s extremely opportunistic, especially because we could say the following: what happened in 2022? The incident that allowed São Paulo to qualify in the Copa do Brasil. If we remember what happened in that game, then yes, we can say: ‘There was a mistake.’ But not now. Mistakes will happen on one side, mistakes will happen on the other, it’s part of the game. That’s why all the work we’re doing, clubs and the CBF, is so that refereeing can evolve and we have indeed noticed progress in that regard,” he said.

Palmeiras director recalls controversy in the Libertadores final

The Palmeiras director recalled an incident in the 2025 Libertadores final that he considered a “blatant mistake.” It was a tackle by Erick Pulgar on Bruno Fuchs. On that occasion, the match referee did not warn the player, sparking debate about whether the Flamengo player should have been sent off.

“We can also remember what happened in the match against Flamengo in last year’s Libertadores final. A blatant mistake. Pulgar should have been sent off in that game. We lost, we accepted it, we owned up, we healed our wounds and we’re ready again to compete. We need, once again, to stop this kind of stance. It leads football nowhere. It’s extremely irresponsible when you bring to a classic, a great event, such a huge responsibility for just one person,” he recalled.

“Only the referees are not responsible for a mistake, because they are part of the process. What we need today is serenity, balance, to allow the professionals on the field to do their best work possible. This can’t happen anymore in today’s football—this kind of stance from directors pressuring referees, putting such huge pressure on a classic like this. Palmeiras repudiates, in every way, with all its strength, this kind of stance. We need to put an end to this,” he concluded.

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