Featured Image Credit: DAZN
Topics: Manchester United, Ander Herrera, FIFA Club World Cup, Boca Juniors, Benfica
Ryan Smart
Topics: Manchester United, Ander Herrera, FIFA Club World Cup, Boca Juniors, Benfica
Former Manchester United star Ander Herrera was sent off after an altercation with a security guard during the Club World Cup clash between Boca Juniors and Benfica.
The bad-tempered group stage fixture ended 2-2 after three players were sent off.
Boca went 2-0 up in the first half through goals from Miguel Merentiel and Rodrigo Battaglia.
Herrera - who was not on the pitch at the time - was then sent off shortly before half-time following a bizarre incident.
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Having been forced after 20 minutes due to injury, Herrera then had a physical altercation with one of the pitchside security guards.
The midfielder was officially sent off for dissent after protesting a penalty decision given against Boca on the cusp of half-time, having tried to confront the referee at the VAR monitor before the security stepped in.
Angel Di Maria converted the spot kick for Benfica, with Nicolas Otamendi equalising on 84 minutes to rescue a point.
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The Portuguese giants had already been reduced to 10 men midway through the second half, with former Roma and Torino striker Andrea Belotti shown a straight red card.
And Boca evened the numbers on 88 minutes when defender Jorge Figal was also given a straight red card.
The match featured a plethora of former United players, with Marcos Rojo (Boca) and Alvaro Carreras (Benfica) also involved alongside Herrera and Di Maria.
The other two teams in Group C are Bayern Munich and Auckland City, with Bayern winning 10-0 in the fixture between the two sides on Sunday.
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That result raised early concerns about the competitiveness of the tournament, with Auckland City qualifying through their position in the OFC four-year rankings as previous Champions League winners but with a squad of amateur players.
In contrast, Bayern's squad is valued at a staggering sum of over €900m (via Transfermarkt), with Jamal Musiala and Michael Olise both valued at over €100 million individually.