Borges takes swipe at Benfica and Porto: let's see who blames refs | OneFootball

José Borges, president of the Portuguese Association of Football Referees (APAF), issued a warning to the directors of Porto and Benfica ahead of this Sunday’s Clássico at the Estádio do Dragão. The official called for a consistent analysis of the incidents in the match and asked that the refereeing team, led by Miguel Nogueira, not be blamed for a possible negative result.

Above all, José Borges hopes that the officials of both clubs analyze the match using the same standards applied to evaluating players and coaches, without turning the refereeing into the center of attention after the final whistle.

"At the end, in the war of words, it will be important to see whether, once and for all, the directors show the courage to analyze the incidents of the match in a coherent way or whether they choose, as is often the case, to direct all the frustrations and excuses for a possible failure toward the refereeing team," he wrote in his column in the newspaper 'Record'.

Moreover, he also reinforced the need to assess the referees’ work based on the decisions made on the pitch, acknowledging that they should be subject to scrutiny, but always within a framework of respect during the match.

"Let them be judged by the decisions they make on the pitch, with high standards, but also with respect, just as should happen when analyzing the work of coaches and players," he concluded. The Clássico between Porto and Benfica is scheduled for this Sunday at 8:30 p.m. at the Estádio do Dragão.

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