The game between Atlético-MG and Independiente Del Valle, from Ecuador, marked the reunion between striker Hulk and referee Esteban Ostojich.
In July this year, during Galo’s duel against Bucaramanga, at Arena MRV, the Uruguayan showed an unusual yellow card to the player from the Minas Gerais team.
After a long conversation, where the two seemed to understand each other, Esteban took the card out of his pocket and applied it to Hulk. In a mocking tone, he said: “Thank you. Hulk, with respect. Look, don’t question me anymore, all the time. You can stay with your team. With respect, you can go there. That’s enough.”
In the match on Tuesday night (28), the scene was different.
Esteban Ostojich reached out to greet Hulk, who “left him in a vacuum”. The image quickly went viral on social media.
They met again… Hulk left the referee in a vacuum, sports fan?
👉 Watch CONMEBOL Sudamericana on !
— SportsCenter Brasil (@SportsCenterBR)
Unusual card
An episode involving Hulk and Uruguayan referee Esteban Ostojich caught attention in the match between Atlético-MG and Buaramanga-COL on July 24th this year. After the end of regulation time, the black and white striker received a yellow card in an unusual way.
Images from the ESPN broadcast showed the player and the referee talking in a friendly tone, with smiles and, out of nowhere, the referee showed the attacker a yellow card.
Hulk changed his expression instantly and left the conversation irritated.
The most unexpected card was for Hulk 🤣 DOUBLED!
— Gustavo Machado (@gustavomachadog)
Voice actor Gustavo Machado published a video pointing to what they both talked about in the episode. Check out the possible dialogue:
Hulk: “Why were they given 14 minutes (in addition) at the World Cup? To have more game time. And here you didn’t give it. You can’t accept it. You can’t.”
Esteban Ostojich: “Gracias. Hulk, with respect. Look, don’t question me anymore, all the time. You can stay with your team. With respect, you can go there. That’s enough.”
Hulk: “La co*** de tu hermana. What’s that? I was talking normally. Is he crazy? No, calm down. The guy is crazy, everything was normal. Ridiculous, I was just talking to him.”
Rooster in the South American final
Atlético-MG beat Independiente Del Valle 3-1 and guaranteed a place in the final of the 2025 Copa Sudamericanathis Tuesday (28), at Arena MRV, in Belo Horizonte, in front of 40,185 fans.
Galo’s goals in the match were scored by Guilherme Arana, Bernard and Hulk, and Claudio Spinelli scored for the Ecuadorian team. Dudu had a great performance, providing assists for the first two goals.
As the teams had drawn 1-1 in the first game, in Ecuador, Galo won the aggregate score in the semi-final 4-2.
Guaranteed in an unprecedented final in its history, Atlético-MG will make its second continental decision in two years — in 2024, it ended up losing the Libertadores final to Botafogo.
Who will be Galo’s opponent in the final?
Now, the team led by Jorge Sampaoli awaits the winner of the other semifinal, played by Lanús and Universidad de Chile.
In the first leg, the teams tied 2-2, and the place will be decided next Thursday (30). The match will be at the El Fortaleza stadium, home of Lanús in the metropolitan region of Buenos Aires.
The grand final of the South American Championship will be played on November 22, in Asunción, capital of Paraguay. The stadium has not yet been announced by Conmebol.
How were the goals
Guilherme Arana opened the scoring in the 36th minute of the first half, after a fight in the area that featured three shots and a miracle from the goalkeeper before Dudu’s assist for the winger.
Bernard expanded for Atlético in the 43rd minute with a great goal, after a beautiful individual play by Dudu.
Independiente del Valle pulled one back in the 18th minute of the second half with Claudio Spinelli, taking advantage of a rebound from Everson, who missed the shot.
But, before any drama, Hulk disenchanted after 15 games of drought and defined the classification, in the 28th minute of the final stage, with a shot placed in the left corner by goalkeeper Guido Villar.
Best chance of a place in the Libertadores
In addition to the possibility of winning an unprecedented continental title, Atlético-MG has a very concrete chance of guaranteeing a place in the next Libertadores in the 2025 South American Championship.
After all, the champion guarantees direct participation in the group stage of Conmebol’s main tournament.
Galo, it is worth remembering, is having an irregular campaign in the 2025 Brasileirão. The team from Minas Gerais even flirted with the relegation zone, but has recovered in the last few rounds.
Atlético-MG now occupies 13th place with 36 points, eleven behind Botafogo, which opens the classification zone for the Libertadores via Brasileirão.
