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Last minute: Cucurella treated João Neves with “Portuguese bastard” live during an post-match interview, but what really amazed everyone is João Neves’s reaction-forcing Cucurella to apologize.

Last minute: Cucurella treated João Neves with “Portuguese bastard” live during an post-match interview, but what really amazed everyone is João Neves’s reaction-forcing Cucurella to apologize.

Member Lowi
Member Lowi
Posted underFootball

During the highly anticipated match between Spain and Portugal, an unexpected scene rocked the world of international football. At the end of the game, while the cameras were still on to cover post-match interviews, Marc Cucurella, a Spanish defender well known for his combative style, was filmed pronouncing an insult against João Neves, a young promising Portuguese midfielder. In a moment of tension, Cucurella called “Portuguese bastard”, a sentence that immediately sparked a storm of reactions.

Cucurella’s declaration not only shocked the spectators, but also the journalists present on the field. The sequence quickly spread to social networks, triggering a wave of indignation on the part of Portuguese supporters and many neutral observers. This type of remarks, deemed discriminatory and disrespectful, is considered to be completely unacceptable, in particular in a sport that promotes the values of respect, fair play and unity between nations.

However, it was João Neves’s reaction that has truly captivated public attention. Rather than responding with anger or creating more controversy, Neves has kept calm. During his own interview, he spoke with dignity, simply declaring: “The words can hurt, but they especially reveal the true face of those who say them. This response, an imprint of maturity and class, was widely hailed and even earned Neves a wave of support from fans around the world.

Faced with growing media pressure and general criticism, Cucurella was forced to apologize publicly the next morning. In a publication on his social networks, he expressed his regrets: “I would like to apologize to João Neves, to the Portugal team and to all those who were offended by my words. It was a moment of emotion that I deeply regret. This is not what I am or what I want to represent. »»

The Spanish Football Federation also published a statement, sentenced to its player’s words and announcing that it would open an internal investigation. On the Portuguese side, the Federation praised the exemplary reaction of João Neves and called for a collective reflection on the behavior to be adopted in international competitions.

 

This incident recalls how much the words have a weight, especially in a context as exposed as that of high -level sport. If the tension is inevitable on the ground, it cannot justify discriminatory words. And sometimes it is the quietest reactions that make the most noise.