Iturralde González firm on Sporting v Estrela da Amadora scandal | OneFootball

Iturralde González, former Spanish international referee, analyzed the controversial incidents of the 12th round of Liga Portugal Betclic. The expert ended up addressing two moments that sparked much debate after the Sporting - Estrela da Amadora match, which the Lions won 4-0.

First, Iturralde González admits that a penalty should have been awarded in favor of the green and whites, for a foul by Otávio on Luis Suárez: "In my opinion, it's a penalty. The defender does not intend to play the ball and the only thing he wants is to put his body and left leg in the way, so that the forward cannot continue his run, thus preventing him from reaching the ball and shooting. At no time does the E. Amadora defender contest the ball. What he does is prevent the opponent from advancing. It's a penalty."

Next, the former Spanish referee also discussed Maxi Araújo's yellow card. In his opinion, there is no justification for the Sporting player to be sent off: "The yellow card is correct. There is no excessive force. The Sporting player puts his hand on Sidny Cabral's face, who throws himself to the ground and simulates an aggression."

"For me, there is no aggression at all, he simply puts his hand on his face. Players have this habit of trying to deceive the referee by simulating aggression. But there isn't any. The referee must caution Maxi, but there is no excessive force. He does not hit him in the face. The yellow card is enough," Iturralde González further admitted.

The green and white team will be back on the field next Friday, December 5, against Benfica. The match, part of the 13th round of Liga Portugal Betclic, against the team led by José Mourinho, will take place at 20:15 at Estádio da Luz.

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