Throwing ball at fan during Sporting KC match costly for Seattle Sounders’ Nouhou
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- MLS suspended Seattle's Nouhou two matches for hitting a fan with a ball.
- League issued Nouhou an undisclosed fine for making an inappropriate gesture.
- Red card suspension served Wednesday; extra ban enforced on upcoming Saturday.
The Major League Soccer Disciplinary Committee on Wednesday suspended Seattle Sounders player Nouhou Tolo for one additional match (two matches total) in the wake of Saturday’s game against Sporting KC, in which the defender threw a ball at a fan in the stands at Children’s Mercy Park.
Nouhou — he goes by his first name — was issued a red card in the aftermath of his action during the match, which Seattle won 3-2. The red carried an automatic one-match suspension; then, on Wednesday, the league doubled it, meaning he must now sit out two games.
The MLS Disciplinary Committee also issued the Sounders player a fine, amount undisclosed, for appearing to give the referee the middle finger — “an inappropriate gesture” — as he was being sent off in the 94th minute.
Nouhou was to serve his red card suspension during Seattle’s Wednesday evening match against the Colorado Rapids, MLS said. The additional match suspension will take place during Seattle’s Saturday match against the San Jose Earthquakes, per the league office.
After last Saturday’s match concluded, Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer maintained that a fan had flipped off Nouhou, prompting him to throw the ball into the crowd in response. A video showed Nouhou throwing the ball at a fan.
Referee Elijio Arreguin said right after the match’s conclusion that Nouhou “threw a ball at a spectator with force, striking the spectator,” and “was sent off for violent conduct.”
Per the laws of the game, violent conduct “is when a player uses or attempts to use excessive force or brutality against an opponent when not challenging for the ball, or against a team-mate, team official, match official, spectator, or any other person, regardless of whether contact is made.”
Sporting KC (6-11-5) is in 12th place in MLS Western Conference, with two teams and four points between Kansas City and the West’s final playoff spot. Sporting KC on Saturday evening plays host to NYCFC at Children’s Mercy Park.
Daniel Sperry’s reporting contributed to this story.