Artur Soares Dias names Sporting star as one of the most annoying players | OneFootball

Artur Soares Dias revealed who the "annoying players" were that he had to deal with on the field. One of the names mentioned ended up being Pedro Gonçalves, the Sporting star. However, the referee, retired since August 2024, went on to list several footballers, "so that no one takes it as club favoritism."

"I encountered many annoying players. Otávio from Porto, for example. Later, in the last game of my career, I met him in Saudi Arabia. He saw me in the tunnel and started laughing. I immediately said to him: 'Today you're not going to bother me.' And he replied: 'No, today is your last game, I won't bother you.' Pote, Bruno Fernandes, and Otamendi are also always around the referee, complaining, trying to pressure, to 'nag'," stated Artur Soares Dias, in statements for the SIC podcast, 'Yesterday Was Already Late.'

Despite highlighting these players in a less positive light, the former Portuguese referee acknowledged that all the names he mentioned "are of high quality". Besides those he encountered on national fields, Soares Dias also commented on the international scene.

"Sterling was one of the most difficult to referee due to his speed and Neymar for always having the ball glued to his foot and for simulating a lot," he remarked, offering a suggestion: "a player who simulates, and it is proven that they simulated, should receive a one-game suspension. Surely, they would take that into account and simulate less often."

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