Abel Ferreira defends Breno Lopes after controversial celebration

A controversial celebration of Breno Lopes in the goal that gave Palmeiras victory over Goiás in the last minute of the duel for the Brazilian Championship continues to give something to talk about. The striker, criticized by the fans, scored in the 51st minute of the second half of the duel last Friday, the 15th, and went towards the fans at Allianz Parque with his hand over his ear and rehearsing obscene gestures. The attitude had a lot of repercussions on the networks, but also within the Alviverde squad, with coach Abel Ferreira and the player’s teammates coming to his defense.

For the Portuguese, who has already had problems with Brazilian football authorities due to heightened emotions, these feelings are part of the sport. In a press conference after the match, he recalled that he himself had to “control” his reactions and that the most important thing is that his team has the support of the fans. Along with this, he highlighted his appreciation for Breno Lopes and that the athlete has his name marked at Palmeiras for his goal in the 2020 Libertadores final.

“I’ve been sent off a few times for not controlling my emotions, although I think I’m better in that aspect now. They’re part of football,” Abel said in the interview. “The most important thing is the support of our fans. He scored the winning goal, that’s what we needed. He’s not a player who has played as much as he wanted, but he has his name in the club’s history. I trust him, I like him and he has a goal “, added the Portuguese.

Castmates also came to Breno Lopes’ defense. Raphael Veiga, an Alviverde idol, said that he has also gotten angry on the field and that it is not always easy to control one’s attitudes in the heat of the moment. “I’ve had emotions like that. I got angry, I fought with the referee; when I missed a penalty, I felt like kicking the post… but after we calm down, we see that things aren’t quite like that”, commented the midfielder. “In football, in fractions of seconds, we have emotions that we cannot control.”

Weverton, in turn, saw the striker’s effusive celebration as an “outburst”, and not an attack on the fans present at Allianz for booing or criticizing. “Not only Breno, but all the players have a lot of respect for the fans. We have an incredible partnership. Breno celebrated, he let off steam, but you can never talk about disrespect”, said the goalkeeper.