Mexican FA bans player who bit opponent

The Mexican FA has banned Tijuana midfielder Juan Arango for two matches after he bit an opponent in a Mexican league match.

Venezuela’s captain Arango bit the Monterrey defender Jesús Zavala on the shoulder in Tijuana’s 4-3 home defeat on Saturday.

The referee missed the incident and took no action. Arango apologised to Zavala and the pair swapped shirts after the match.

Ignacio Palou, Tijuana sporting director, said the club had taken their own disciplinary measures against the player.

“It is conduct that we can’t imagine, produced by situations that occur on the pitch,” Palou said during a press conference.

“Many times, the emotional stability of the players can be affected. He recognises that he made a mistake.”

The incident was reminiscent of Uruguayan Luis Suárez’s attack on Italian Giorgio Cheillini’s during last year’s World Cup. Suárez was given a nine-game suspension from international matches and a four-month ban from league action. This was, though, the third such occasion that Suarez had resorted to biting an opponent.