León’s Lucas Romero speaks after being kneed by referee Fernando Hernández in América Liga MX clash

Mexican referee Fernando Hernández is in hot water after striking Lucas Romero with his knee in León’s Liga MX clash away to Club América. The official could be severely punished by the Mexican Soccer Federation’s Disciplinary Committee, who are investigating the incident. The Argentinian midfielder, however, has moved to play down the incident and has not called for Hernández to be sanctioned.

“Obviously, they are human beings and they can make mistakes. Those mistakes can end up developing into what happened and other kinds of misunderstandings. Anyway, the way the match played out, we were able to salvage a draw”, Romero told TUDN.

What happened between Hernández and Romero?

The León man explained exactly what had happened between the pair at Estadio Azteca and is of the opinion that Hernández wasn’t trying to hurt him. “I was simply saying to him that the goal (América’s equaliser) shouldn’t have stood and I did it in a repsectful way, with my hands behind my back. But I don’t think it was done with malicious intent” he stated. The official raised his knee to Romero and struck him, seemingly in an attempt to push him away, which caused the midfielder to collapse to the ground.

Finally, Romero had a message for Liga MX referees. “I’m not asking for anything special. I just want them to respect us in the same way that we respect them on the field. They are the authority”, he said.

What punishment could Fernando Hernández receive?

In accordance with Liga MX sanction guidelines, Hernández could be handed a suspension of anywhere between one and 15 games, in addition to receiving a fine.