Raphinha: “Job done”, slams referee over penalty, altitude complaint | OneFootball

Raphinha left the field frustrated after Brazil's defeat to Bolivia on Tuesday in El Alto, during the last round of the South American Qualifiers for the World Cup. The national team's number 10, who was brought on in the second half, complained about the altitude of over 4,000 meters and the refereeing by Chilean Cristian Garay.

Brazil struggled to compete against Bolivia on Tuesday. Deeply affected by the altitude of El Alto, the team could not make their game flow, adopting an extremely cautious approach to avoid the consequences of the thin air, which allowed the Bolivians to enjoy the match.

Referee Cristian Garay was also criticized by Raphinha due to the penalty that was awarded to Bolivia, which decided the outcome of the game. Initially, the Chilean had not called the foul by Bruno Guimarães on Fernández inside the box, but he ended up conceding after a VAR review.

“There shouldn't even be a question about it. When a team makes you play at 4,000 meters altitude to win the game, it greatly disadvantages the other teams. In a balanced game, where the referee found a penalty, it complicates our game on the field even more,” Raphinha told TV Globo.

With the result, Brazil finished the South American Qualifiers in fifth place with 28 points, after starting the last round in second place, behind only Argentina. However, since the spot for the World Cup had already been secured since the last FIFA date, the position in the table will have no effect for the team led by Carlo Ancelotti.

“We had a bit of difficulty, especially at the beginning of the competition. We won our first two games, then we had difficulties. I think our main goal was to qualify for the World Cup and I think we achieved that. Now it's about continuing to work to reach our best moment for the World Cup,” Raphinha added.

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