Footballer Receives Red Card for Alleged Groin Incident (Video)

Abdel Abqar, a player for Getafe, was shown a red card during their match against Atletico Madrid for allegedly pinching an opponent's genitals. This incident occurred at the Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid during a weekend fixture.

Atletico Madrid was leading with a goal from Nahuel Molina in the first half when the referee, Miguel Ortiz Arias, paused the game to check for an off-the- ball incident using VAR.

Footage revealed that Abqar had a physical confrontation with Atletico's Alexander Sorloth. In the video, the Moroccan defender seemed to pinch Sorloth's groin with his thumb and forefinger as he walked past him.

Sorloth responded by immediately bringing Abqar to the ground in retaliation.

After a thorough review of the VAR evidence, the referee decided to issue a red card to Abqar, while Sorloth was given a yellow card for his actions.

Following the match, an astonished Abqar voiced his objection to the dismissal, asserting that he had no intention of touching his opponent inappropriately.

He explained to Movistar LaLiga, "I want to clarify that it wasn't my intention to touch the player in that area. In football, we often collide, but I did not mean to make contact there. The video demonstrates that I was not aiming to touch him in that way."

Abqar further stated, "I swear I did not intend to touch him; my goal was to make a normal football contact. The referee perceived it as an inappropriate gesture, but that was not my intention. I swear on my family I did not mean to touch him there."

He continued, "If you analyze the video, I wasn't looking at him, and my hand was supposed to connect with his stomach, as is common between players to gauge their positioning. I want to make it clear that my intention was not to touch him inappropriately."

For the visual evidence, a video of the incident can be viewed below.