Porto defender Pepe feels that Inter striker Lautaro Martinez was very lucky to escape a yellow card and automatic one-match suspension for a late tackle during the second half of yesterday evening’s Champions League match.
Speaking to the Portuguese team’s official social media channel, via FCInterNews, the 39-year-old gave the view that the Argentine striker should have went into the book, which would have seen him out for the second leg of the round of sixteen tie.
Late in the second half of yesterday evening’s match, Pepe won the ball in a duel with Martinez, and as the former Real Madrid man looked to carry it away, the Inter striker lunged in to win it back.
The 25-year-old’s challenge was not a particularly good one, taking out the Porto defender without getting close to winning the ball.
Referee Srdjan Jovanovic decided against going to his pocket, considering the incident to be nothing more than a regular foul, but from Pepe’s perspective, it would have warranted a yellow card.
“Lautaro put in a challenge that was worthy of a yellow card, and would have seen him suspended for the second leg at the Dragao, but obviously the referee didn’t see it that way,” the defender said.
He added that “I think the team deserves credit for how we performed, but then we got a red card which obviously was not in our plans.”
“We had our chances as well, but after the red card they played to win, and when you don’t take your chances in these matches you pay for it.”
