Portugal-Chile friendly turns violent; trouble brews for Cristiano Ronaldo's FIFA World Cup plans: Watch

Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal's FIFA World Cup plans hit a bump after the friendly match against Chile turned ugly. The game saw tempers flare between players of both teams before half-time, with players exchanging blows. The incident began after a challenge near the corner flag between Chile defender Felipe Faundez and Portugal's Joao Cancelo. Faundez won the challenge and cleared the ball, but Cancelo was unhappy with the way the Chilean player got up after the tackle, prompting an annoyed reaction.

The situation quickly escalated after Portugal's Rafael Leao and Chile's Ivan Roman got involved. Leao appeared to swipe his hand across Roman's face, prompting the referee to send both players off. Cristiano Ronaldo attempted to have a word with referee on the decision, but to no avail.

Rafael Leao Faces World Cup Ban?

Following the incident, concerns were raised about whether FIFA would ban the player. Chile is not part of the FIFA World Cup in the US, Mexico and Canada, but if FIFA takes the big call, Portugal could face issues. Usually, a red card in friendly matches results in bans in other friendlies, and not competitive matches. However, because Leao was dismissed for violent conduct, speculations are rife that FIFA's Disciplinary Committee could extend the ban to official fixtures, which could mean that Leao could watch initial matches of the FIFA World Cup from the sidelines.

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Recently, Curacao striker Jurgen Locadia was close to missing his team's FIFA World Cup opener against Germany on June 14 after being handed a red card for violent conduct during a 1-4 loss to Scotland in a friendly match in May; however, the ban was limited to one match, ensuring that he only misses the final warm-up against Aruba.

Portugal will begin their World Cup campaign against Congo on June 17. They'll face Uzbekistan on June 23 and Colombia on June 28 in Group K fixtures.

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