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

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

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

According to the information shared on social media, Cardoso Carlos Matumbe Varela would actually 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, instead of the 17 stated on his Portuguese citizen card.

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

“We know perfectly well where these stories are coming from, and Cardoso Varela, given the history of his departure from FC Porto, the way the improper approach to a young player and his family happened through false dreams… You can easily understand where certain paid-for stories come from and how they are pushed to achieve greater reach. We know perfectly well where they come from, and we are fully on the athlete’s side,” began André Villas-Boas, speaking to journalists.

“The athlete is a Portuguese citizen, with a Portuguese passport, he has represented the national team, he represented FC Porto, and we are very proud to have brought him back, especially because of the sad story he has 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 athlete’s father and the player,” continued the club’s president.

Without directly mentioning the Croatian agent Andy Bara, who recently accused Cardoso Varela of inappropriate behavior during the period when the youngster represented 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 athlete and his former agent, there were some unpaid school and education bills for the athlete Cardoso Varela which FC Porto will take on. So, we know perfectly well where these stories come from, and we are not in the slightest concerned about them,” he concluded.

Cardoso Varela 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.