Ligue 1 referee Tony Chapron has been suspended from work and has apologized after kicking out at a player who knocked him over on Sunday.
Chapron was knocked to the turf by Diego Carlos in Nantes’ match against Paris Saint-Germain. The referee then sent Carlos off via a second yellow card.
He’s been suspended “until further notice” as a Nantes player has called for a 10-match ban.
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Chapron, for his part, admits he made a pretty significant mistake.
Tony Chapron to AFP: "When I collided with Diego Carlos, I felt a sharp pain in an area where I had suffered a recent injury. In a terrible reflex, I stretched out my leg to the player. This clumsy gesture was inappropriate."
— Get French Football News (@GFFN) January 15, 2018
The incident baffled Nantes boss Claudio Ranieri, who said he’d “never seen anything like it. I am sure you haven’t either. I do not know what happened. ... What I do know is that I could not have one of my players in the closing minutes and, more seriously, that he will be suspended for the next match. But why? Why?”
The red card, to no one’s surprise, will not come with a suspension.