Renato Gaúcho hits back at Vasco director over refereeing row

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Papo na Colina

·16 Maret 2026

Renato Gaúcho hits back at Vasco director over refereeing row

The bittersweet taste of a last-minute draw set the tone for Vasco's press conference in the capital of Minas Gerais. Coach Renato Gaúcho dissected Vasco's 3-3 draw against Cruzeiro in a match held this Sunday (15) on the pitch of Mineirão, during the sixth round of the Brasileirão.

The coach addressed the controversial expulsion of midfielder Cauan Barros, who scored two goals in the match. The coach recounted the backstage conversation and gave his honest assessment of the play:

Video OneFootball

“I saw the expulsion incident against Flamengo as well. Today he scored two goals, helped us a lot. He's a young player, makes mistakes that are normal. The expulsion was fair, but there was no intention. It's just that the foot went in too much.”

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Management's Outrage and Coach's Perspective

The atmosphere heated up behind the scenes with a strong statement from the football director Admar Lopes. The Vasco official criticized the performance of referee Lucas Paulo Torezin, from Paraná, and lashed out at the crucial mistakes:

“I come on behalf of Vasco to say that Mr. Lucas Torezin's performance was completely unacceptable. It's not the first time he referees our games, especially away games, with a tendency to favor the home team. A clear incident for expulsion against Tchê Tchê, which wasn't even aired. There are two penalties on Robert Renan and Andrés Gómez. I don't know what he saw, but it was completely shameful.”

The institutional stance was contrary to the technical analysis in the locker room. The head coach spared the referee and only made a direct remark about the excessive added time:

“I don't usually talk about refereeing. I think he did well in the game. I just didn't understand the amount of added minutes; he gave ten minutes. There was nothing that harmed Vasco.”

Admar Lopes and Renato Gaúcho had different views on the refereeing: Photo: Guilherme Abrahão/Jogada 10

Five-Man Line and Decisive Talk at Vasco

The coach revealed the tough demands at halftime that led to a temporary comeback with goals from Cauan Barros and striker Brenner. The team leader explained the demand for a change in attitude:

“We had to play. We were marking, but with the ball, we weren't playing. I said we needed to have courage, for teammates to show up and step into the area.”

The professional also defended the strong tactical retreat in the final stretch before focusing on the derby against Fluminense. The coach detailed the reason for the defensive strategy:

“I don't think it was premature. Gómez had a yellow card, any foul would get him sent off. I took out Nuno, who was worn out. With one less player, there's no point in exposing ourselves. I made a five-man line at the back.”

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