Portugal midfielder Ruben Neves hopes the Italian protester who entered the pitch sporting a rainbow pride flag during his side’s 2-0 World Cup win over Uruguay is shown leniency by the Qatar authorities.
Mario Ferri, or The Falcon as he is known in Italy, ran onto the pitch in the second half in the Lusail Stadium with the flag, wearing a t-shirt that had ‘Save Ukraine’ on the front and ‘Respect Iranian Women’ on the back.
Ferri, known for his pitch invasions back home, chose to take a stand in a tournament where coaches and players have wanted to move on from discussing wider issues in Doha. Homosexuality is illegal in Qatar, with protests against discrimination regularly clamped down on by local authorities at the World Cup.
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Two goals from Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes secured Portugal a place in the last 16 with one group game to spare, but the main talking point in the match was whether the first goal was in fact Cristiano Ronaldo’s, with the veteran skipper claiming he got a touch on Fernandes’ cross before it found the net.
“I don’t know [who scored it],” Neves added. “I didn’t see the image yet. [Fernandes] said he didn’t know. The most important thing is not who scored for Portugal but how we won the game.
“It’s an amazing feeling. Our main goal was this.”
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