Cardona’s nightmare: misses two penalties, bizarre red card vs São Paulo | OneFootball

In the Morumbi stadium, San Pablo eliminated Atlético Nacional 4-3 on penalties after having tied 1-1 overall and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Copa Libertadores 2025. The series had Edwin Cardona as its protagonist, who in the first leg missed two shots from the twelve steps and in the return was expelled in an unusual way.

The former Boca and Racing had a poor performance in the first leg played in Medellín. At 13 minutes, he missed the first penalty, which didn't even go to the goal. Later, in the middle of the second half, he again had another ideal chance to break the zero. However, on this occasion, goalkeeper Rafael prevented the goal, causing the frustration of the Colombian.

"Few have the character to do what I did. We are human beings and we have to assume it. Now they will talk a lot; I'm here to face it. Tomorrow is another day. I know that criticisms will rain down and they will tell me what they want, but I'm here to assume them," commented the 32-year-old midfielder.

In the return leg played in Brazilian territory, referee Nicolás Ramírez awarded Verdolaga a penalty at 25 minutes of the second half. This time, striker Alfredo Morelos was in charge of converting it. However, Cardona was again in the eye of the storm. He received a second yellow card and was expelled by the Argentine judge, after having celebrated the equalizing goal in the face of Nahuel Ferraresi.

In the first leg, a similar situation occurred. The Venezuelan shouted in the face of the Colombian effusively, after he had missed the second penalty. However, Uruguayan referee Gustavo Tejera did not discipline the defender. In the face of this contradiction in criteria, Atlético Nacional fans expressed their complaints on social media.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.