Paulo Otavio: Wolfsburg defender’s brutal tackle vs Hoffenheim remembered

There’s taking one for the team and then there’s Paulo Otavio’s brutal tackle for Wolfsburg vs Hoffenheim.

A contender for one of the most cynical red card offences we’ve ever seen, the incident which happened towards the end of the 2020-21 campaign has re-emerged on social media.

Trailing 2-1 deep into stoppage-time, Wolfsburg had a corner and one final opportunity to rescue a point away from home.

Goalkeeper Koen Casteels went forward but was frantically racing back towards his own goal moments later after the ball was cleared.

Hoffenheim forward Mu’nas Dabbur burst away from Casteels and looked certain to put the ball into the unguarded net.

But the Israel international was scythed down by a flying two-footed tackle by Otavio, who was left with absolutely no complaints when referee Markus Schmidt flashed a straight red card in his direction.

The Brazilian left-back knew full well that the early bath was deserved.

Watch the tackle in all its glory here:

Will always be the best foul committed in football. Glorious.pic.twitter.com/oBpnoLGvI2

Absolutely outrageous!

Let’s check out some of the reaction to the clip:

While Otavio may have prevented Wolfsburg from conceding a third goal, he was slapped with a four-match ban by the German Football Association.

Was it really worth it, Paulo?

In a lengthy statement on Instagram after his red card tackle went viral, the South American said, per The Metro: “Today was an ‘atypical’ day in my life, I don’t know if I should say anything. But out of respect for all who support me, I will speak.

“When I started in this sport, I didn’t imagine that I would get here. I dreamed, I dreamed a lot about several moments. Moments when I would leave games as a hero, smiling, on top of the