Jorge Valdivia defends ‘joke’ gesture made during Al Wahda debut

Jorge Valdivia has attempted to clarify his actions during Al Wahda’s Arabian Gulf League match on Sunday night.

Jorge Valdivia made his debut for Al Wahda on Sunday in their Arabian Gulf League defeat to Al Shabab. Mostafa Reda / Al Ittihad

Jorge Valdivia has attempted to clarify his actions during Al Wahda’s Arabian Gulf League match on Sunday, saying what many thought was an inappropriate hand gesture was merely a joke directed at friends in the stands.

The Chilean playmaker, a summer signing from Palmeiras in Brazil, made his debut for the Abu Dhabi club in the 1-0 home defeat to Al Shabab at Al Nahyan Stadium.

Valdivia was the subject of some harsh treatment from the Shabab players, but at half-time he seemed to direct his frustrations at the crowd.

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After videos of the incident emerged on social media, immediately after the game, Wahda released a statement on their official site late Sunday seeking to explain the gesture.

“Jorge Valdivia has insisted that the hand signal he gave at half time in the match between Al Wahda and Al Shabab was directed at a group of his friends who had attended the match, and at no one else,” the statement read. “He added that it is a sign that is regularly exchanged between friends in Brazil and Portugal as a joke and does not hold any negative intentions.”

Valdivia, who represented Al Ain from 2008 to 2010, used the statement to defend his actions, saying: “I hope that the fans do not misunderstand it.”

Wahda’s team manager, Abdulbasset Al Hammadi, said Valdivia has been subjected to “intense scrutiny” since he returned to the UAE last month.

“For our part we have spoken to the player and asked him to refrain from acting in any way that could be deemed controversial,” Al Hammadi said.​

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