Houston Dynamo captain Hector Herrera was sent off after a shocking incident in Saturday night’s clash with Seattle Sounders which saw the veteran midfielder spit at the feet of the referee.
The 34-year-old is one of the most experienced players in Major League Soccer, with 105 Mexico caps to his name and having enjoyed a successful career in Europe with Porto and Atletico Madrid.
However, he completely lost his discipline at the Shell Energy Stadium in Houston on Saturday after he was initially shown a yellow card for a clear foul on Sounders defender Jackson Regan.
Herrera hacked Regan down from behind and referee Armando Villarreal was quick to book him for the fould.
The Dynamo skipper walked past the referee then turned around and clearly spat at his feet, seeminly in protest over the decision.
Villarreal didn’t see what happened as it was behind his back but VAR stepped in and sent him over to review the incident on the monitor.
It did not take much reviewing and Herrera was shown a red card for his outrageous show of dissent.
Dynamo head coach Ben Olsen was non-commital after the match, saying that he had not spoken to his captain about what happened.
‘I have to look at what Hector did, for the red card,’ he said. ‘But we’ve had five, six red cards against Seattle, it just seems like every time we play them we end up getting red cards.
‘We have to make sure we’re smart and give us the best opportunities to win.’
On the incident he added: ‘No, I haven’t talked to him about it, just addressed the team.
‘From what I saw, he spat at the referee, and any time you do that you’re at the mercy of these guys.’
The red card came on 66 minutes with the score goalless in the MLS Cup contest, two late goals saw it finish 1-1 before Seattle won on penalties.