Ex-Benfica player’s risky play stirs controversy in Vitória v Sporting | OneFootball

Nélson Oliveira was sent off with a direct red card against Sporting. In the match that took place last Tuesday, December 23, the forward, who played for Benfica, received a red card following an incident where he left Gonçalo Inácio, the lions' defender, quite battered, which sparked strong protests.

In the 87th minute of the match, where the green and white emblem ended up winning (4-1), the former striker of the reds, in a ball dispute, ended up stepping on the lower part of the leg of Sporting's number 25, prompting intervention from the match referee.

However, the situation did not end there. Following the foul, the incident generated a huge protest among Sporting players, with Morten Hjulmand and Iván Fresneda engaging in a heated argument with Nélson Oliveira. The two lions' athletes ended up with yellow cards, while the former Benfica player was sent to the locker room early.

Sporting went to the stronghold of the Vimaranenses — where the Clube da Luz had already won 3-0 — to defeat Luís Pinto's team by four goals to one. In the end, the lions close the 15th round with 38 points, in second place, three points ahead of Benfica (35) and five points behind Porto, who will spend Christmas in the lead.

It is worth recalling that, at the end of the match, Frederico Varandas responded to the rivals' criticisms, pointing the finger at the control that Benfica and Porto, under the leadership of Luís Filipe Vieira and Pinto da Costa, had over refereeing for decades.

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