Mick Hartley

Luis Suarez isn't the only Latin American footballer in Europe who's got himself into a spot of bother. See this BBC video.

From AP:

The Dutch football federation said Thursday it has yet to decide whether to replay a cup match between Ajax and AZ Alkmaar that was halted after a supporter ran onto the field and tried to attack Alkmaar's goalkeeper.

The alert Costa Rican goalkeeper Esteban Alvarado deflected the attack by a 19-year-old fan, tripping him with a karate-like kick. But Alvarado was given a red card for kicking the supporter again in anger twice immediately afterward before the intruder was dragged off by security guards.

Alkmaar coach Gertjan Verbeek ordered his side to walk out in protest rather than play with 10 men and the game was halted in the 36th minute. Ajax was leading 1-0 on a goal by Gregory van der Wiel.

Ajax director Jeroen Slop said the supporter had already been banned from the stadium for a year due to a previous run-in with security guards, but managed to sneak into the cup match with a ticket purchased by a friend. He has now received a lifetime ban from all Ajax matches….

The Dutch players' union has demanded that the red card be retracted.

"This cannot lead to a suspension" for Alvarado, said union chief Danny Hesp, arguing that Alvarado's reaction was in self-defense after an unexpected, unprovoked attack. The union "will do everything it can to fight this" decision, he said.

The federation said Thursday it will decide "soon" whether Wednesday's match should be replayed, resumed, or have Ajax declared the winner….

In a highly unusual move, the country's justice minister Ivo Opstelten got involved in the debate, saying the attack was "beastly" and that "jerks and nuts don't belong on the field." He added that he thought AZ's Verbeek was right to walk out under the circumstances.

For what it's worth, I don't see why it's any business of the ref's. This wasn't part of the game. If the goalie needs disciplining, let the Dutch FA or the police deal with it afterwards.