Santos' Yeferson Soteldo stood on top of the ball vs Vasco da Gama, he instantly regretted it
Santos' clash against Vasco de Gama on Sunday evening was plunged into chaos after Yeferson Soteldo decided to showboat by standing on the ball.
It all kicked off in the 55th minute of this weekend's Brazilian Serie A match at the Estadio Urbano Caldeira.
As Santos defended a 3-1 lead following goals from Marcos Leonardo (2) and Tomas Rincon, the mischievous Soteldo thought it was a good idea to mock the opposition by showboating.
After teammate Jean Lucas ran behind, the 26-year-old Venezuelan stood on the ball for several seconds – an act that prompted Vasco's Sebastian Ferreira to make a stand.
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Ferreira charged towards Soteldo at some pace before smashing into the pacey winger. You can watch the incident in full below.
Opinion seems to be divided.
— All Things Brasil™ 🇧🇷 (@SelecaoTalk) October 1, 2023
Is this skill from Soteldo for Santos vs Vasco today, disrespectful or completely fine? 💭🇧🇷
pic.twitter.com/39XApZf6R0
Moments later, Vasco players Gary Medel and Dimitri Payet made their feelings known on the incident, as did several other players, who were carded for their actions.
In fact, referee Anderson Daronco handed out a total of six cards following the brawl, with Medel receiving a red alongside Santos players Lucas Lima and Rodrigo Fernandez.
Soteldo, who divided opinion with his showboating antics, was also handed a yellow by Daronco alongside Ferreira and Santos goalkeeper Joao Paulo.
One fan commented on the above incident, saying: "This ain't skill. He was just being disrespectful," while another wrote: "Completely unacceptable. Disrespectful. There’s no joy in that… that’s just clowning around."
A third added: "Football is completely a sport and it's about entertainment, people need to stop being sore."
The home side went on to win the game 4-1, with Soteldo grabbing a goal in the 75th minute.
Soteldo once opened up about his dream of playing in the Premier League with Manchester United amid transfers links to England's top flight.
He told Venezuelan outlet Ruta Vinotinto: “I have the dream of playing for Manchester United.”
Thoughts on the showboating incident?
Let us know in the comments.
Jack Kenmare