Villas-Boas denies rumours over Cardoso Varela's falsified age | OneFootball

André Villas-Boas, FC Porto president, spoke on Wednesday afternoon about the accusations that Cardoso Varela may have falsified his passport details.

The rumor gained traction on social media over the past few hours, having initially been spread by an account on the social network X called PortoReport, and by another linked to former football agent Paulo Teixeira.

According to the information shared on social media, Cardoso Carlos Matumbe Varela would in fact be Petilson Carlos Matumbe Vihemba, born on July 20, 2004, and not on October 28, 2008. If confirmed, these details would mean that Cardoso Varela is 22 years old, rather than the 17 listed on his Portuguese citizen card.

André Villas-Boas categorically rejected the rumors. On the sidelines of the ceremony for the awarding of the City of Porto Medal of Merit, held on Wednesday afternoon at Porto City Hall, the president of the Dragons denied that possibility and said the information had been planted.

“We know perfectly well where these reports are coming from, and Cardoso Varela, given the background of how he left FC Porto, the way improper pressure was put on a young player and his family through false dreams… You can easily understand where certain paid-for stories come from and how they are pushed to reach a wider audience. We know perfectly well where they come from, and we are fully on the player’s side,” began André Villas-Boas, speaking to journalists.

“The player is a Portuguese citizen, with a Portuguese passport, he has represented the national team, he has represented FC Porto, and we are very proud to have brought him back, especially given the sad story he had already been accused of, namely also when leaving Croatia by the same agent [editor’s note: Andy Bara] who represented him when he left FC Porto, saying that FC Porto harassed and intimidated the player’s father and the player,” continued the club’s top official.

Without directly mentioning Croatian agent Andy Bara, who recently accused Cardoso Varela of inappropriate behavior during the period when the youngster played for Dinamo Zagreb, Villas-Boas brought up other allegations made by the agent when the winger moved to Croatia in 2024.

“I also recall that, under an agreement made between the player and the former agent, there are some unpaid invoices for the schooling and education of player Cardoso Varela that FC Porto will take on. So, we know perfectly well where these reports are coming from, and we are not in the slightest worried about them,” he concluded.

Cardoso Varela has returned to FC Porto and signed a contract valid until 2029, now restarting his journey with the Dragons in the B team.

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