Major League Soccer suspended Inter Miami star Luis Suarez for three matches, which takes him out of the club’s rematch with the Seattle Sounders after Suarez spat at a Seattle staffer after the Leagues Cup final.
The Leagues Cup Organizing Committee previously suspended Suarez six games for the incident, but that only covered future participation in the tournament that features MLS and Liga MX clubs. The committee noted in a statement that MLS had the right impose additional discipline.
As the Sounders concluded a 3-0 victory in Seattle to win the cup, the teams got in a scuffle that featured the Suarez spitting incident as well as Miami midfielder Sergio Busquets appearing to throw a punch.
Now, Suarez will be ineligible for Inter Miami’s match this weekend at Charlotte FC, Sept. 16 against visiting Seattle and Sept. 20 against visiting D.C. United.
Suarez, a 38-year-old Uruguayan who once starred for Liverpool and Barcelona, has a history of bad behavior on the field. Three times he has been suspended for biting opponents, and he once was suspended for racial abuse, though he denied the allegation.
Sounders assistant coach Steven Lenhart also received additional punishment from MLS after the Leagues Cup Organizing Committee suspended him five games for reported violent conduct.
MLS pulled Lenhart’s credentials for the rest of the season, meaning he “cannot be on or near the field of play, nor in or around the locker rooms, or tunnel,” per the league’s news release. Lenhart is permitted to attend Seattle’s home matches in public seating areas. MLS also fined the Sounders an undisclosed amount.
–Field Level Media
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