Portugal national football team winger Rafael Leão is likely to miss his country’s final World Cup warm-up match against Nigeria national football team on Wednesday after being sent off in Saturday’s friendly against Chile.
The AC Milan forward saw red just before half-time for striking Chile defender Ivan Román in the face during the encounter.
Even after the dismissal, Portugal still went on to claim a 2-1 win, with second-half strikes from Gonçalo Guedes and Bruno Fernandes sealing the result, before Román pulled one back deep into stoppage time.
Leão had been given a starting role after missing several recent matches for both club and country due to suspension and selection decisions under coach Max Allegri.
With the latest red card, the winger is expected to sit out Wednesday’s friendly against Nigeria if the standard one-match ban is applied, though the suspension could potentially stretch into Portugal’s World Cup group fixtures against DR Congo national football team and Uzbekistan national football team.
The game against Nigeria at the Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa in Leiria will be Portugal’s third and final preparatory match before the tournament, having already recorded wins over co-hosts USA and Chile.
For Nigeria, the fixture marks the conclusion of their latest rebuilding phase under coach Eric Chelle.
The Super Eagles were held to a 2-2 draw by Poland in Warsaw last Wednesday. Prior to that, they defeated Zimbabwe and Jamaica to retain the Unity Cup in London.
Portugal and Nigeria last met ahead of the 2022 World Cup, when the Europeans secured a 4-0 victory.
As in that cycle, Nigeria have once again failed to qualify for the tournament, missing back-to-back editions for the first time since their World Cup debut in 1994.
