Gustavo Herrera, forward of Sporting San Miguelito, aimed against his goalkeeper, José Calderón, for a questionable action that ended in an own goal and the defeat of his team in stoppage time
An unusual episode sparked a scandal in the Panamanian Football League. During the match between Alianza FC and Sporting San Miguelito, he was scored by a goal against him in stoppage time and serious accusations
between his teammates.
The move that ignited the controversy occurred 90 minutes later, when Sporting's goalkeeper, José Calderón, staged a questionableaction that resulted in the decisive goal for the rival team to win 3-2 over the hour: instead of clearing theball, he ended up inserting it into his own goal. The reaction was immediate: Gustavo Herrera, the visiting team's forward, left the playing field before the end of the match,
Hours later, the soccer player deepened his position with very harsh statements on social networks, where he directly accused his partner of an alleged match-fixing. “The love of soccer is in your heart, but many have already lost it.I'm speaking with a name, José Calderón is a fucking match sharpenerand there are many more,
” he wrote.
Far from lowering the tone, Herrera continued: "They are not ashamed, they already make it so clear... Everyone seeing a player with a lot of experience, who at the time represented the country, in this shit. Is that the example you give to younger people? ”.
Herrera's disclaimer in networks He
also defended his personal position: "There are many players who kill themselves in games, players who want to leave the country to fulfill their dreams. And I am one of those: no matter how many times I fall, I will get up to fulfill my dream.” “Those who are tarnishing the sport step aside and dedicate themselves to something else and have the balls to accept what they are doing. The truth is this is very sad,” he concluded.
Given the seriousness of the accusations, Calderón responded publicly and denied any wrongdoing. “An unfortunate move occurred that resulted in an own goal. I express my sincere apologies to my teammates, coaching staff, family and fans... taking full responsibility for a purely sporting and involuntary error
,” he said. Calderón's statement after the accusations
In addition, he was blunt in the face of his partner's sayings: "I categorically reject any attempt to link this play with behavior contrary to the integrity of the sport.” In that regard, he warned that he reserves the right to take legal action for the accusations.
The conflict escalated to the institutional level and the Panamanian Football League announced the opening of a formal investigation. “An ex officio investigation has been opened for the serious event that occurred... which could compromise the integrity of the competition... This League will act with the utmost rigor and will take the investigation to its ultimate consequences,” the agency said
.
The case had a strong impact on Panamanian football and brought back into question transparency and internal controls within the competition to avoid possible match arrangements.
