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

Nélson Oliveira was sent off with a straight red card against Sporting. In the match that took place last Tuesday, December 23, the forward, who once played for Benfica, received a red card following an incident in which he left Gonçalo Inácio, the Lions’ defender, badly hurt, sparking strong protests.

In the 87th minute of the match, where the green and white team ended up victorious (4-1), the former Benfica striker, in a challenge for the ball, ended up stepping on the lower part of Sporting’s number 25’s leg, forcing the referee to intervene.

However, the situation didn’t end there. Following the foul, the incident sparked a heated dispute among Sporting players, with Morten Hjulmand and Iván Fresneda getting into a heated exchange with Nélson Oliveira. The two Sporting players were shown yellow cards, while the former Benfica player was sent to the locker room early.

Sporting traveled to the home of the Vimaranenses — where Clube da Luz had already won 3-0 — and defeated Luís Pinto’s team by four goals to one. With this result, 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 at the top of the table.

It is worth recalling that, at the end of the match, Frederico Varandas responded to criticism from rivals, 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.