Summary:
Referee João Coelho suffered an alleged assault during a match in Algarve.
The referee required hospital treatment and his vehicle was vandalized.
Mário José Batista Macário is accused of the assault but denies the allegations.
Another player from Armacenenses claims that no aggression occurred.
The incident has sparked a controversy among players and referees.
Assault on Referee João Coelho
The three football referee associations in the Algarve—Núcleo José Filipe, Núcleo António Matos, and Núcleo do Sotavento—issued a joint statement on Monday, alleging that referee João Coelho was assaulted during a match between Armacenenses and Alvorense last Saturday. The incident necessitated hospital treatment for Coelho and involved vandalism of the refereeing team's vehicle.
The statement claims that the assault was carried out by Mário José Batista Macário, a player from Alvorense, who reportedly delivered a violent punch to the referee's arm and kicked his legs. Furthermore, the statement highlighted that the referee required medical attention due to the incident.
Denials from Players
In an interesting twist, Pedro Sapateiro, a player from Armacenenses, commented on the José Filipe Referee Association Facebook page, refuting the allegations of aggression from Macário. He stated, "I am a player for Armacenenses, I played that game, and at no point was there an assault by the Alvorense player against the referee, let alone punches and kicks."
Mário Macário also responded, stating, "This is an outright lie; you only write what suits you. Nowhere do I see that the referee pushed an Alvorense player and was then pushed back to disperse the confusion, and nothing more," he expressed on social media.
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