Corinthians called for sanctions on the fans responsible for attacking goalkeeper Cássio in Wednesday’s match with Santos for the round of 16 of the Copa do Brasil.
“Corinthians regrets and considers unacceptable the violence suffered by our athletes and the technical commission on Wednesday in (the stadium of) Vila Belmiro”, communicated the whole of the city of Sao Paulo through their social networks.
After the 1-0 away loss to Santos, which still allowed Corinthians to advance to the quarterfinals of the Copa do Brasil thanks to their 4-0 first-leg rout, fans invaded the pitch at the end of the match and Cássio was attacked.
The intervention of attacker Marcos Leonardo and other Santos players prevented Cássio and other players and members of the Corinthians coaching staff from suffering more serious attacks.
«Firecrackers, invasion of the field and aggression against our athletes made leaving the field dangerous, which was dominated by an extremely hostile climate. After the scare, all our professionals are safe, “said Corinthians.
However, ‘Timao’ warned that he will take “the pertinent measures and request sanctions so that scenes like these are not repeated.”
In an interview this Thursday with the TV Bandeirantes channel, Cássio lamented the fact, affirmed that “it cannot be generalized” when referring to the behavior of Santos’ fans, but warned that “there was little left for a tragedy.”
The coach of Corinthians, the Portuguese Vítor Pereira, recalled that during his time at clubs in Turkey and Greece he experienced “situations identical to that”.
“That, in fact, is not football. Football cannot be that. I know that Santos is not going through a good phase, there is a lot of frustration, but you cannot go over the limit. If we stop having security, there will be no football,” Pereira said during the post-match press conference.
One of the greatest idols in the history of Santos, the forward of the French PSG and the Brazilian team, Neymar, also lamented what happened in the São Paulo stadium.
“I am sad about the defeat of Santos, but what saddened me the most was seeing the attitude of that fan. It is in heated moments that we take attitudes that make us regret and leave us with shame. I hope this serves as a lesson for all the fans,” Neymar wrote on social media.
The Secretary of Public Security of the state of Sao Paulo reported this Thursday that five people, all male and aged between 20 and 33, were arrested for the incidents that occurred in the stadium and will respond to the Justice in freedom. EFE
ABSURD: A torcedor do Santos invaded or grazed and tried to attack Cássio!pic.twitter.com/8YHpMnzCHo
– Curiosities Brazil (@CuriosidadesBRL) July 14, 2022
