€50m Man Utd, Arsenal target facing ban after extraordinary punching incident

Manchester United and Arsenal summer transfer target Rafael Leao has published a statement on social media after the red card he received during Portugal’s friendly win over Chile that could see him banned for multiple matches.

The AC Milan star, who has approved an exit from the club this summer, was red-carded by referee Luca Zufferli as goals from Goncalo Guedes and Bruno Fernandes secured a 2-1 World Cup warm-up win for Roberto Martinez’s side in Lisbon on Saturday evening.

Chile star Felipe Faundez went in hard on the winger before then going into another challenge with Portugal full-back Joao Cancelo.

As Faundez cleared the ball, he clashed with Cancelo as he rolled off the pitch. The incident then saw Chile centre-back Ivan Roman move in to protect Faundez, with Leao then entering the fray himself.

But as Leao and Roman then traded pushes, the Milan attacker put his rival on the deck with what appeared to be a punch to leave Roman holding his face.

Taking to his social media profiles after the victory over the South Americans, Leao took the opportunity to explain his actions.

“First test completed. As for my sending off, I simply wanted to protect my team-mate, I had no intention of harming the opponent! Thanks to all the Portuguese who were at Jamor, the atmosphere was incredible, we’re all in this together.”

As La Gazzetta dello Sport reported, violent conduct resulting in a red card could mean a two or three-match ban, which in this case would prevent Leao from starting the World Cup. However, there are a couple of precedents that give Portugal cause for concern.

One concerns their captain Cristiano Ronaldo, who was sent off last November for elbowing Ireland defender Dara O’Shea and subsequently only received a one-match ban.

The other, more recent, concerns Curacao striker Jurgen Locadia, also sent off for elbowing Billy Gilmour in the friendly against Scotland. He received a one-match ban, to be served in another friendly, with his World Cup was unaffected.

That means Leao could miss Portugal’s next friendly against Nigeria before the showpiece event begins, unless FIFA chiefs react differently to a punching incident and opts for a longer ban.

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Man Utd, Arsenal keen on Leao move

As per a recent report, Arsenal have reportedly been ‘offered’ a chance to sign the Man Utd target after his summer exit was approved by the Italian side.

The Red Devils have been heavily linked with a move for Leao ahead of the summer transfer window, especially with Michael Carrick’s in need of a new left-sided attacking forward.

While TEAMtalk sources have previously revealed United’s genuine interest in the player, they have not yet acted upon that after being alerted recently to the opportunity.

In a boost to both Man Utd and Arsenal, Leao also previously said: “Yeah of course I like (Manchester) United because my idol is Cristiano Ronaldo, so back then, I used to watch them. I like Arsenal also.”

And now Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport (via Football Italia) insists that the Portugal international has been ‘offered to Arsenal in recent weeks’.

Despite that, ‘negotiations with the 26-year-old’s camp have not progressed for now’ and the report adds that ‘the Rossoneri would be happy to sell their winger for just €50m, yet the only offer Leao has received so far is from Galatasaray’.

That is something our transfer expert Graeme Bailey has previously confirmed with Milan open to letting Leao leave for a fee in the region of €50million (£43.1m / $58.7m) – a valuation that is already alerting clubs across Europe.

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