Leeds star Saiz faces six-match ban for spitting

Matt Stead

Leeds forward Samuel Saiz faces the prospect of a six-game ban should the Football Association find him guilty of spitting during the FA Cup defeat at Newport.

Saiz was sent off in injury time for spitting at Newport midfielder Robbie Willmott, as Leeds suffered a shock 2-1 third-round defeat to Sky Bet League Two opposition.

Referee Mike Dean confirmed later that he showed Saiz the red card for spitting, and Leeds could now lose the influential Spaniard from their Championship promotion bid until the end of February.

UEFA’s rulebook punishes spitting with a mandatory six-game ban, and Jonny Evans and Papiss Cisse were both suspended after being found guilty of the offence during a Premier League match between Newcastle and Manchester United in March 2015.

Told of the spitting allegation, Leeds manager Thomas Christiansen replied: “If that’s right why he got the red card then it’s a problem.

“This is something we need to talk about. We need to speak and we’ll see what happens.”

It is not the first time that Saiz has been involved in a spitting row since joining Leeds from Huesca last summer.

Port Vale manager Michael Brown said Saiz spat at his defender Joe Davis during a Carabao Cup tie in August, but the Football Association did not bring any charges against the 26-year-old.