Stop me if you heard this one before: After reviewing the tape of a New York City FC’s match, the MLS Disciplinary Committee found that the referees blew a call on game day call and have taken retroactive action against the team’s opponents. This time, the committee handed a one-game suspension and undisclosed fine to Evander, Portland’s star playmaker, for “violent conduct” in stoppage time that the MLS refs didn’t catch.
Basically, it’s a red card after the fact. But justice delayed is justice denied: Evander was allowed to play for the final tense minutes of a game that NYCFC had a chance of winning.
MLS Refs: Blown cards x 4
But that’s not the first time this season that NYCFC have been done wrong by officiating. This is the fourth example this season of a significant on-field ruling that was later corrected.
- Matchday 13: Orlando City’s César Araújo fined for simulation/embellishment
- Matchday 15: FC Cincinnati’s Yerson Mosquera fined for simulation/embellishment
- Matchday 16: Braian Cufré red card vs New England Revolution overturned
- Matchday 20: Portland Timbers’s Evander suspended and fined for violent conduct