The referee at the center of Argentina vs Switzerland breaks his silence and explains Embolo's red card
Portuguese referee João Pinheiro broke his silence and explained the controversial sending-off of Embolo in the Argentina vs Switzerland World Cup quarterfinal.
The World Cup has a way of doing this: one refereeing decision becomes the talking point for weeks. The quarterfinal between Argentina and Switzerland was exactly that. Now, Portuguese referee João Pinheiro has decided to speak.
In an interview with Canal 11, Pinheiro explained the moment that sparked the most debate: the sending-off of Breel Embolo for a second yellow card. The story has a twist. At first, the officiating team believed an Argentine player had committed a foul. But a review of the incident told a different story.
"We saw there was no infringement and that it was a simulation," said Pinheiro. Since it was Embolo's second yellow card, the consequence was automatic: dismissal. The referee also made clear that, even had it been a first booking, the decision would have been the same — punish the dive.
The episode involving Messi also came to light. Cameras caught the Argentine captain asking the referee for respect during the match. Pinheiro played the moment down. "Messi gave me some problems, as other players did too," he explained, noting that FIFA's new rules allow that kind of dialogue between captains and referees.
Nothing out of the ordinary, according to him. Just football.
And Argentina march on. The Golmetria model gives the Argentines a 6.92% chance of lifting the trophy — a figure that looks modest until you remember they are already in the semifinals. The market, based on odds data, points to an implied probability of 7.49% for Messi's sixth world title.
The World Cup is not over yet. And wherever Argentina go, controversy follows — on and off the pitch.