Rui Pedro Braz corruption claims cause stir, journalist apologises | OneFootball

Rui Pedro Braz’s departure from Al Ahli remains shrouded in controversy and has taken a new turn in recent hours. The Saudi club has not disclosed the reasons behind the dismissal of the Portuguese sporting director, but several versions have begun circulating in the international press, including corruption allegations that would later be withdrawn by the author himself.

Rui Pedro Braz of Al Ahli was reportedly linked to alleged suspicions of corruption in the process that took Artem Bondarenko from Shakhtar to the Saudi club.

The Ukrainian midfielder was meanwhile booed by Al Ahli’s own supporters. In the version initially published by the journalist, Bondarenko and his agent had asked for an annual salary of €1.3 million. Rui Pedro Braz allegedly presented Al Ahli with a proposal worth €2.5 million, without explaining to the club the difference between the amounts.

The information quickly gained international traction and directly linked the Portuguese official’s name to suspicions of corruption. The story, however, would take a twist. This Friday, Sacha Tavolieri revealed that he had contacted Al Ahli officials, who denied any corruption allegations related to the Bondarenko case or Rui Pedro Braz’s departure.

Following the Saudi club’s response, the journalist deleted the original post on social media platform X and publicly corrected the information previously reported: “After being contacted, Al Ahli denied any allegations of corruption linked to the Bondarenko case or any other case related to Rui Pedro’s departure. The Saudi club states that the reasons behind the Portuguese sporting director’s departure are not the ones reported last night. Therefore, I apologize to the club,” he wrote.

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