Atletico Madrid striker sorloth was at the center of a heated off-the-ball clash that ended with Getafe defender Abdel Abqar sent off during Saturday’s La Liga match at the Estadio Metropolitano. The dismissal followed a VAR pitchside review after replays showed Abqar touch sorloth’s groin and the Norwegian forward pull his opponent to the ground; Sorloth then received a booking for his reaction. The result — Atletico 1, Getafe 0 — was set by Nahuel Molina’s eighth-minute strike, but the game was overshadowed by the confrontation.
Sorloth incident and red-card decision
Play was halted early in the second half when referee Miguel Angel Ortiz stopped the match and ordered a VAR check. Stadium replay screens showed Abqar touching sorloth’s groin during an off-the-ball altercation; the images then showed Sorloth pulling Abqar to the turf in apparent retaliation. After reviewing the footage on the pitchside monitor, the on-field decision was to send Abqar off, while Sorloth was shown a yellow card for his response. The referee named in a later match report, Isidro Diaz de Mera, described the offence as “pinching the genital zone” of an opponent.
Immediate reactions
Abdel Abqar, Getafe defender, denied any intentional contact with sorloth’s genitals, saying: “It was not my intention to touch the player in this area. You see it in every game, and in football, we’re touching, clashing and everything, but I never thought about touching him in that area. I don’t know what the referee saw but you can see it clearly and I swear that I never thought about touching him there. “
Juan Musso, Atletico goalkeeper, reacted strongly to the decision and the incident: “These are things that happened 30 years ago, the referee was right to sent him off. Before you could do this [in football], now there is no place for these things. “
Disciplinary action, context and what happens next
The Spanish football federation’s disciplinary committee reviewed the images and concluded that “the images are compatible with the facts described in the referee’s report. ” The committee announced a two-match ban for Abqar as of 1: 00 PM ET on Mar 18, 2026. The suspension will keep Abqar out of Getafe’s upcoming league fixtures against Espanyol and Athletic Bilbao. With Getafe reduced to ten men after the sending-off, they created several late chances but were unable to salvage a result.
Quick context: Nahuel Molina’s long-range strike into the top corner in the eighth minute proved decisive. Sorloth had earlier struck the post before half-time, leaving the tie finely poised until the post-break altercation.
Outlook
Attention now turns to Getafe’s response and any appeal the club may lodge; the two-match ban is in place and affects immediate team selection. Atletico will head into their next fixtures buoyed by the victory but still facing scrutiny over player conduct in the clash with sorloth at the heart of the controversy. Further disciplinary or club-level actions could follow as both teams prepare for their next league matches.
