Judge Juan Benítez will deliver justice this Tuesday. In his country, an elected official sought to declare him “persona non grata” in Luque, after a controversial performance in January.
La Roja will play a crucial match against Bolivia on Tuesday at the National Stadium, at 6:00 p.m. The duel is expected to be a pivotal match, key to resuming the fight for a ticket to the 2026 World Cup. The 3-0 defeat against Argentina sealed Chile’s worst start in the history of the Qualifiers. Therefore, anything other than winning and adding three will practically mortgage the national team’s options.
The Red is focused on the Green. The match that will be played in Ñuñoa will be directed by the referee The Paraguayan Juan Gabriel Benítez. The international judge tells a controversial story. Just eight months ago, the whistleblower was at the centre of controversy. In a duel between Sportivo Luqueño and Libertad, a foul goal by the historic Óscar Cardozo angered the locals.
The event intensified so much that on January 26, 2024, at the Municipal Commission of Luque, Councilor Francisca Franco Rodríguez requested that the appointed arbitrators, Romero and Benitez, be declared “personas non grata”. “All the citizens of Luqueña in general and in particular the fans of the Sportivo Luqueño club, feel aggrieved by the unsportsmanlike attitude that these referees have shown towards the Sportivo Luqueño club,” the document states.
“Deplorable and regrettable the performance of the referee Blas Romero, who validated the first goal of Libertad, transformed by Lorenzo Melgarejo, after an obvious handball by the player Oscar Cardozo, who placed the ball with his arm after a corner; all this with the shameful approval of referee Juan Gabriel Benítez,” the letter explains.
Gareca prepares for changes
This Saturday, Tigre tried a new eleven to face the match. There was the return of Gabriel Suazo, who had missed the match against the Albiceleste due to suspension. In addition, it included two Colo Colo players: Carlos Palacios and Vicente Pizarro.
On Sunday, yes, Flaco’s board of directors moved again. However, the Cacique’s footballers continue in the pattern. Gareca repeated with Mauricio Isla and Erick Pulgar as starters. The full-back showed physical problems against Argentina, a match he was captain of. Huaso trained differently with the Flamengo midfielder, who arrived suffering from discomfort that prevented him from traveling to the transandean lands.
Both were in doubt, but they have evolved well. In the analysis, they went from being a possible alternative to being part of a likely all-star line-up against the Highlands.
In this way, and in the absence of a single training session, the possible formation of the Roja against Bolivia would be with Gabriel Arias Mauricio Isla, Matías Catalán, Paulo Díaz, Gabriel Suazo; Erick Pulgar, Vicente Pizarro, Carlos Palacios; Darío Osorio, Eduardo Vargas and Victor Davila.
Source: Latercera
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
