Benfica 'gifts' Man of the Match award to the referee.

Jose Mourinho is unhappy with the refereeing in the Portuguese league.

The 2-2 draw against Famalicão in the 32nd round of the Portuguese Primeira Liga on May 3rd put Benfica in a difficult position in the race for a Champions League spot, but what angered the Lisbon team even more was the way the match was officiated. Immediately after the match, Benfica issued a sarcastic message: "Award the Man of the Match title to referee Gustavo Correia and the officiating team."

This move reflects the extreme frustration within Benfica after a match they felt was unfairly treated. The visitors led by two goals but were unable to maintain their advantage. They pointed to a series of controversial decisions: a clearly disallowed penalty, another situation where VAR intervention only resulted in a penalty, the red card given to Nicolás Otamendi, and especially the 15 minutes of added time deemed "unacceptable".

Chairman Rui Costa made no secret of his anger. “I just want to express my outrage and that of the Benfica fans. What happened today is unacceptable,” he said after the match.

The head of Benfica emphasized that football should be decided by the players on the field, not by the referee. “No one has the right to decide which team wins the league or qualifies for the Champions League. But what happened today shows the opposite. The referee tried to prevent Benfica from achieving their goal,” said Rui Costa.

According to him, the mistakes began in the 30th minute when Benfica were not awarded a penalty that could have increased the score to 3-0. Conversely, Famalicão's second goal came from a corner kick that Benfica claimed did not exist. "Even the penalty we were awarded required VAR intervention, even though it was a very clear situation," Rui Costa said angrily.

The most controversial point was the 15 minutes of added time at the end of the match. Despite the assistant referee's injury, Benfica argued that this time was completely unreasonable and directly affected the result.

This draw cost Jose Mourinho's team a crucial advantage in the race for the top three against Sporting CP. They also handed the Portuguese league title to Porto. With only two rounds remaining, Benfica must now determine their own fate amidst serious questions about the quality of refereeing.

The Portuguese Football Federation has not yet issued an official response. However, given the current level of tension, the incident is expected to remain controversial in the coming days.

Source: https://znews.vn/benfica-tang-danh-hieu-hay-nhat-tran-cho-trong-tai-post1648307.html