It was unacceptable to have an Argentine referee officiating the game – Pepe speaks after Portugal’s defeat to Morocco

Portugal’s defender, Pepe has channeled his anger toward the Argentine referee who oversaw the European country’s quarterfinal defeat to Morocco at the 2022 World Cup.

Morocco booked a semi-final spot in the tournament after Youssef En-Nesyri headed in the only goal of the match in the 42nd minute. The North African team held on for another hour, playing the last five minutes with 10 men after Walid Cheddira received two yellows in 60 seconds in added time.

Speaking after the match, the veteran center-back expressed his displeasure with having Argentine referee Facundo Tello officiate the game, presumably given the sporting rivalry between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Pepe said;

“It was unacceptable to have an Argentine referee refereeing the game, after yesterday, with Messi talking, an Argentine comes and whistles.

“In the second half, nothing was given, there were only eight minutes [of stoppage time]. We worked very hard, for eight minutes, nothing was played. In the second half, we just wanted to play. We are sad, we had the quality to win, unfortunately, we didn’t manage to do it.”