Türkiye-Paraguay, first red card in history for ‘covered mouth’: Vinicius rule is triggered

They have already renamed it the “norm Vinicius” and on the occasion of Türkiye-Paraguay in San Francisco it was applied. Miguel Almiron he was sent off by the Salvadoran referee Barton, recalled by the VAR, for having said something to an opponent, Müldür, holding his hand in front of his mouth. Thus makes its debut one of the innovations introduced by Fifa and Ifab and born after the controversy that erupted over the Prestianni-Vinicius case in the Champions League.

The precedent and the new FIFA rule

On the occasion of the match between Benfica and Real last February, the Argentine was accused of having insulted his rival while covering his mouth with his shirt: a three-match ban plus another three suspended, with the UEFA disciplinary body accepting Prestianni’s thesis (insult yes but homophobic), rejecting the accusation of racism made by Vinicius. To avoid the repetition of similar situations, FIFA intervened decisively by developing a rule with Ifab that does not allow players to cover their mouths while talking to an opponent, under penalty of a red card. And Almirón was the first to pay the price.

The verdict of the pitch and the victory of Paraguay

Paraguay beat Turkey 1-0, which is eliminated from the 2026 World Cup, and keeps alive their hope of qualifying for the round of 32. Gustavo Alfaro’s men, with ten men for the entire second half after Miguel Almirón’s dismissal shortly before half-time, only needed a goal from Matías Galarza in the second minute to secure the three points. The result also guarantees the United States, coached by Argentine Mauricio Pochettino, first place in Group D.

Report of the match and Turkey’s final assault

Galarza’s low long-range shot went past Turkish goalkeeper Uğurcan Çakır after just 63 seconds. The former Newcastle striker, for his part, was sent off in first-half injury time for covering his mouth while appearing to make a comment to Turkey’s Mert Müldür. This is the first red card in the history of the World Cup for this type of infringement.

In a confusing match, Deniz Gül had a sensational chance to equalize in the 80th minute, when Paraguayan goalkeeper Orlando Gill could only parry a shot, but his shot went wide. Merih Demiral grazed the post with a header in the final seconds and almost burst into tears after the match, while his teammates fell to the ground bitterly disappointed.