Is sanitisation in football about to stoop to a new low?
Manchester City supporters heckled Porto's ineffectual striker Hulk with chants of "You're not incredible" at Eastlands last night.
Yet because Hulk doesn't turn green, morph into a muscular giant of improbable proportions and smash things up, his club have had the temerity to file a complaint to Uefa.
If this is revenge for monkey chants aired at City's black players at the Dragao stadium last week, then it is a decidedly odd dish served.
The Guardian reported that Rui Cerqueira, Porto's club's spokesman, said that the matter would be reported because the Citizens' supporters had acted in an improper way.
The not-so-jolly-and-not-so-green giant had also been labelled a cheat because of his purported penchant for simulation.
Straight-faced, his club is considering claiming that he was the victim of unsporting behaviour that warrants an official investigation. Long-faced, football fans will despair.
Even Liverpool fans are aghast at FC Porto's complaint:
The timing is terrible too. Fifa emphasised their competence again yesterday by prioritising handshakes and sportsmanship ahead of claims of in-house corruption and bungs. It was suggested at a motion that teams should enter the centre circle at the end of games and shake hands, so expect them to latch on to Porto's, ahem, complaint. Especially when racism is rearing its head in football again. That can be solved with a handshake, according to Sepp Blatter.
Porto are also outraged at City's complaint of racist chants last week. They claimed that the chants were actually both sets of supporters, serenading in unison, the names of Hulk and Sergio "Kun" Aguero. "Kun, Kun, Kun; Hulk, Hulk, Hulk," Cerqueira said at the time. "These can be easily confused with racist chants." Incredible, since Aguero wasn't even on the pitch at the time.
Real name Givanildo Vieira de Souza, the Brazilian striker earned the nickname "Hulk" when playing in Japan due to his resemblance to actor Lou Ferrigno, who played the iconic role in the 1970's The Incredible Hulk TV series.
He however failed to wreak carnage at the Etihad Stadium, as City trounced their opponents 4-0, winning the last-of-32 Europa League tie 6-1 on aggregate.