Richard Ríos and Otamendi go head-to-head in heated Benfica row | OneFootball

Benfica defeated Fenerbahçe on August 27, in the second leg of the play-off to qualify for the regular phase of the Champions League, for which Benfica secured their place. Although this is old news, it has now come to light that tensions between the two teams flared during halftime at Luz, requiring the intervention of Otamendi and Richard Ríos.

According to information provided by sports commentator Pedro Sousa and confirmed by the newspaper Record, the incident happened as the teams were heading to the locker rooms, with the Eagles already ahead in the tie. Pushing and heated exchanges were at the root of the conflict.

Amid all the confusion, Otamendi and Richard Ríos took on the role of defenders of the Eagles’ squad. The initiative shown by Benfica’s captain, as well as by the Colombian newcomer, impressed the club’s football management.

Despite the incident, such an episode was not included in the report of the main referee assigned to the match, Slavko Vincic. The heated discussion is believed to have been triggered by nerves running high, due to the millions at stake in the play-off for access to the European competition.

Ironically, it was Akturkoglu who sealed Fenerbahçe’s fate, as the club ended up signing the winger from the Eagles shortly afterwards.

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