Luis Suarez facing huge ban as new footage of 'spitting' incident emerges

Inter Miami striker Luis Suarez has received widespread criticism after he appeared to spit in the face of a Seattle Sounders staff member following Sunday's Leagues Cup final.

Seattle recorded an emphatic 3-0 win over Inter Miami thanks to goals from Osaze De Rosaria, Alex Roldan and Paul Rothrock, but the result was overshadowed by a mass brawl between both sets of players at full-time.

Sergio Busquets appeared to strike Mexico international Obed Vargas on the chin, Maxi Falcon had Sounders player Cody Baker in a headlock, and Inter's Tomas Aviles threw punches at Jackson Ragen as tempers flared inside Lumen Field.

But the biggest talking point involved former Liverpool and Barcelona striker Luis Suarez, who berated Seattle Sounders security director Gene Ramirez during the melee.

As you can see from the fan footage below, Suarez was involved in a heated exchange with Ramirez and, after giving him an earful, the Uruguayan appeared to spit in his face before being escorted away.

After the full-time whistle, Seattle manager Brian Schmetzer was asked about the brawl.

"Unfortunately, that is going to take some of the attention away from a great performance by the Seattle Sounders," he said. "Their players were frustrated and that led to some things happening on the field that shouldn't happen on the field."

Schmetzer added: "I'm going to shut that down, because that shouldn't be the story. The story of the game is not what happened after the game."

Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano was also asked to give his take on the incident.

"I have nothing to say because I was far away and didn't see what happened," he said. "Nobody likes for there to be these types of actions. Maybe there was provocation, but I don't know what happened."

If previous spitting incidents are to go by, then Suarez will likely receive a hefty punishment.

Earlier this year, Norwich forward Borja Sainz was handed a six-game ban and fined £12,000 after admitting to spitting at Sunderland's Chris Mepham.

A couple of months earlier and Houston Dynamo's Hector Herrera was given a three-match ban by the MLS for spitting in the direction of a referee.