Cape Verde boss Bubista calls out Uruguay's Vinas for abandoning injured player to score equaliser

Cape Verde manager Bubista publicly criticised Uruguay forward Federico Vinas after he abandoned efforts to assist an injured opponent to join a counter-attack that ended in a goal during their 2-2 World Cup Group H draw in Miami on Sunday.

Vinas had been helping Cape Verde’s Telmo Arcanjo, who was struggling with cramp, in the closing minutes of the first half in Florida. He abruptly stopped and rejoined his teammates on a counter-attack, which resulted in Marcelo Bielsa’s side drawing level before the interval.

The incident drew a pointed response from Bubista, who directed his remarks squarely at Uruguay’s head coach — a manager widely regarded as one of football’s most vocal advocates for sportsmanship.

“I was upset by that, because Bielsa taught us to have fair play,” Bubista told reporters. “That’s in his press conferences, that’s in the matches that his teams play. We learned what fair play was from his attitude. It felt frustrating, but that’s part of the game and part of the experience of growing with the team.”

Bubista acknowledged his own side could have done more to protect themselves. “We could have kicked the ball off the pitch, but we’re trying to do things our own way. It’s also natural that players will sometimes feel pressured — we can say that about the Uruguay team as well. We can only grow from what happened.”

The match itself was a dramatic affair. Cape Verde opened the scoring through Kevin Pina, before Uruguay hit back via Maximiliano Araujo and then moved ahead in stoppage time with a goal from Agustin Canobbio — the strike that followed the Vinas incident. Substitute Helio Varela then equalised for Cape Verde, earning them a second point in the tournament and keeping their knockout-stage hopes alive.

Footage of Vinas leaving Arcanjo’s side to sprint into the counter-attack went viral after the final whistle, attracting sharply divided reactions. Some viewers defended the Uruguay player’s instinct to compete, while others questioned whether the goal should have stood at all.

Both sides return to action in the final round of Group H fixtures, with Uruguay facing Spain and Cape Verde taking on Saudi Arabia. Spain currently sit top of the group after a 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia at the weekend.