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Red card wasn't enough: Brazil court hands footballer unprecedented ban over horror tackle
Brazil's Superior Court of Sports Justice (STJD) ruled that the standard punishment was insufficient given the severity of the injury
Internacional defender Victor Gabriel has been handed an unusual suspension by Brazil's sports court after seriously injuring Cruzeiro forward Gabriel Pec during a Serie A match between the two sides.
Victor was shown a red card for a reckless challenge that left Pec with a fractured left tibia. The striker, who joined Cruzeiro from Major League Soccer side LA Galaxy earlier this month, was making his debut for the Brazilian club in a match they eventually won.
Brazil's Superior Court of Sports Justice (STJD) ruled that the standard punishment was insufficient given the severity of the injury and instead imposed a suspension that will last until Pec is fit to return to training — a period expected to be around six months.
"The offender may remain suspended until the injured party is able to return to training, respecting a maximum period of 180 days," the court said, adding that the ruling can be appealed.
Appearing before the court, Victor Gabriel expressed remorse over the incident.
"It was a completely unfortunate incident.
"I apologised to him and offered my help. I asked him to forgive me because I had no ill intent, and all I could do at that moment was pray for him."
The proceedings also took an unexpected turn after Brazil's sports court questioned the authenticity of evidence submitted by Internacional. The club's legal team had presented audio purportedly from the match's VAR communication, before later requesting that it be disregarded after its authenticity could not be verified.
In a statement on its official website, Internacional clarified that the law firm representing the club had relied on an audio recording circulating on social media in its defence.
"Both the law firm and Internacional emphasise that they never intended to act in bad faith in any way within the context of the proceedings in question," the club said.
"There was, however, a recognised error in the collection and use of the content presented in the player's defence, which was immediately acknowledged through an express request to remove the audio from the case file."
