Portugal manager Roberto Martínez has urged FIFA not to hand out a lengthy ban to Cristiano Ronaldo over his red card against the Republic of Ireland.
A shock 2–0 defeat went from bad to worse on the hour mark when VAR caught a clash between Ronaldo and Dara O’Shea. The Al Nassr forward was deemed to have thrown an elbow into the defender’s back and was subsequently shown a red card.
It means Ronaldo’s role in Portugal’s qualification for the World Cup is over but, perhaps more concerningly, the veteran forward could be suspended for the first two games of next summer’s tournament if FIFA’s disciplinary committee finds him guilty of violent conduct.
As far as Martínez is concerned, a suspension of anything more than the typical one game would be incredibly harsh as he believes Ronaldo’s act was not violent—rather a frustrated response to a series of provocative actions from O’Shea and his Ireland teammates.
“After the game it’s a difficult time because emotions can be unclear,” Martínez said. “I saw his reaction to a provocation. It started at the beginning of the game, in every play in the penalty area. It even started the day before in the press conference.
“And it was a reaction of trying to continue playing. Others might fall to the ground and look for a penalty. It’s not a violent action, it’s not a red card for violence, but a reaction to a provocation. We need to try to show the case and prepare well. I would say it would be very unfair to impose a long suspension.”
According to Portuguese outlet , officials from Portugal are working on a formal appeal to FIFA to try and ensure Ronaldo is only suspended for one game.
