Jose Mourinho has voiced strong criticism of the officiating in Portugal following a setback in Benfica’s pursuit of the championship over the weekend.

The acclaimed manager, now 62, made his return to Benfica in September, marking a quarter-century since his brief 11-game tenure with the Portuguese powerhouse.

During his current stint in Lisbon, Mourinho’s experiences have been a mix of triumphs and challenges. Under his leadership, Benfica has secured victory in half of their 12 matches. However, the team finds itself ranked 35th out of 36 in the Champions League phase, trailing Porto by six points and sitting three points behind Sporting Lisbon in the domestic league.

The turning point in the match against Casa Pia came with the controversial awarding of a second-half penalty for handball. Although goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin managed to stop the penalty, the chaos that ensued saw Tomas Araujo accidentally score an own goal. Renato Nhaga then equalized the game in the dying moments of injury time.

The situation was exacerbated when Sporting secured a dramatic 94th-minute victory at Santa Clara on Saturday, benefiting from a mistakenly awarded corner. This decision sparked outrage among supporters of Benfica and Porto alike.

Jose Mourinho has slammed the level of refereeing in Portugal after Benfica dropped points

Benfica were 2-0 up but drew 2-2 after Casa Pia were awarded a contentious penalty 

In his post-match comments, Mourinho, who has a history of being outspoken about referees, did not hold back in his critique of the officiating standards in Portugal.

‘Casa Pia didn’t have a single shot on goal,’ he fumed. ‘The game was dead, and then… if I’m going to comment on the referee’s and VAR’s performance, I also have to analyse what happened yesterday and a week ago, and that takes me into territory I prefer to avoid.

‘It’s (the penalty) a mistake – and I’m being generous in calling it a mistake – by VAR, whose mission is to help the referee avoid errors. It’s a blatant and egregious error by VAR. 

‘It’s our fault because we didn’t close out the game completely; we closed it out at 2-0, but the referee and VAR reopened it.’

Mourinho continued: ‘Benfica deserves more respect from everyone, and when I say everyone, I mean my players too, not just me. Some players may not know what Benfica is all about. 

‘There’s a clear double standard at all levels, whether in the media or in refereeing. Benfica is too big and deserves a different kind of respect. 

‘Benfica demands the utmost respect, even when we’re not the best coach in the world; we have to keep expectations at the highest level.’

During his spell at Fenerbahce, Mourinho took his refereeing concerns to new levels and regularly eviscerated the standard of officiating in Turkey, even claiming they favoured arch-rivals Galatasaray.

Fuming Benfica president Rui Costa demanded authorities do something about the situation

But his viewpoint on Sunday was also shared by Benfica president Rui Costa, who demanded authorities do something about the situation.

‘There have been too many cases like this against Benfica,’ he fumed. ‘Benfica will request a preliminary hearing before the Arbitration Council, the governing body of Portuguese football, because what is happening is far too serious. 

‘What we have seen in these past two days is far too serious. Two points for one team and two points taken from the other. This is how championships are won, and Benfica will not remain silent in the face of a situation like this. 

‘You know this is not how I operate in football, but enough is enough. My apologies for this as well, but enough is enough. 

‘I am here to speak about the law once again, just as I did yesterday. These are two blatant cases.’