The red card shown to Endrick against Nantes on Saturday night sparked a lot of reactions and even led to a tense exchange between the two coaches…
Last night, Olympique Lyonnais had the chance to confirm their good form during their trip to Nantes. Mission accomplished with a 1-0 victory, sealed by a goal from Pavel Šulc in the first half.
However, during and after the match, it wasn’t this precious win or the Czech’s new goal that fueled discussions on social media, but rather Endrick’s expulsion in the 60th minute.
The young Brazilian forward was sent off after kicking Dehmaine Tabibou in the Achilles tendon. Initially shown a second yellow card, the decision was later upgraded to a direct red after VAR intervention. This marked his first expulsion in France, igniting a firestorm on social media. Many Lyon supporters criticized what they saw as a harsh treatment of one of Ligue 1’s stars.
Fonseca is not happy
After the match, Paulo Fonseca didn’t hide his frustration:
“For me, the red card is very harsh. There’s a very clear foul before Endrick’s action. The Nantes player isn’t trying to play the ball, but to block it.”
The Portuguese coach also called for better protection for his player:
“This is the third match where opponents start with a lot of aggression towards Endrick. I thought that was in the past. The intention was clear: they wanted to intimidate him. Referees need to protect the talent of a player like Endrick.”
His Nantes counterpart, Ahmed Kantari, responded bluntly:
“Endrick isn’t protected enough when he’s the one delivering the blow? It’s my player who comes off injured! I would have preferred he could endure the little fouls like Endrick.”
This exchange reignites the ongoing debate about the protection of stars in Ligue 1, a topic that was very much alive during the days of Zlatan Ibrahimović and Neymar.
