Junior Firpo injured and criticizes international break

Real Betis Balompié

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Junior Firpo
710.000€-50.000€-

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The participation of Junior Firpo with the Dominican Republic has been cut short by a new physical problem. After playing virtually full matches against Nicaragua and Trinidad and Tobago, the full-back had to leave the clash against Haiti when he had been on the pitch for just ten minutes.

Firpo had already been carrying discomfort since the previous international commitment. “I was coming into the match against Trinidad and Tobago with discomfort and I felt a bit of a stronger stretch than I should have”, the player explained to the Dominican media.

The next step will be to find out the extent of the issue. The Betis has already shown interest in the status of its player and is hoping to learn the results of the tests. “We will wait for the tests to see if I return to the club, they already called me and want to see what there is”, he said.

What is confirmed is that Junior Firpo will not play this Monday against Nicaragua. The defender himself left little doubt about his chances of taking part: “If I couldn't play the previous match, I don't think it will be possible”. Marcelo Neveleff, head coach of the Dominican Republic, also confirmed his absence at Sunday's pre-match press conference.

Junior Firpo criticizes the new international break

Beyond explaining his discomfort, Firpo focused on the national-team schedule. The Dominican international was critical of the model established by FIFA for the autumn of 2026, which has concentrated several international matches during a break of almost three weeks for club competitions.

When asked whether the accumulation of matches could have been related to his injury, his answer was direct: “Surely yes”.

The Betis full-back also did not hide his disagreement with the change from the previous format. “I didn't really understand why they changed the break. Before we played two matches in ten days and it was better than doing four in eleven. They'll know”, he said.