The preseason friendliness between Como and Real Betis were in turmoil as a massive bout of brawls exploded and involved several former Premier League stars.
Fracus erupted just before halftime, with both teams sending players out.
Previously, Como’s Maxio Perrone on the Italian side of Manchester City was given a march order, and the original right-back Hector Bellerin saw the red for Spanish team Betis.
Pelon previously appeared to be slapping Betis’ Pablo Forum across his face. The Fornals retaliated with his own slap, followed by a punch from Perrone, causing a brawl to be sparked.
Multiple brawls continued as coaching staff from both sides quickly separated players on the pitch. On a strange turn of the event, Betis forward Kucho Hernandez accidentally attacked his teammate, Nathan.
After about 30 seconds of battle, the judge showed Perrone a straight red card.
Surprisingly, Fornals escaped the punishment. It may have been a case of false identity, but 30-year-old Bellerin tried to speak to the judge to ease the situation, but was sent by himself after becoming increasingly upset.
Tensions erupted again as the team walked the path towards the tunnel at the picturesque city of Estadio in Cadiz, Spain.
In an astonishing twist, Berelin’s red card was overturned by the referee at halftime, but Fornal’s night ended abruptly as the referee overturned his decision.
Como on the away side had 2-0 ahead in that interval, but Betis was able to level out his score of just 17 minutes in the second half.
But Como had a final laugh when Ivan Azone took a penalty at the house in 92 minutes to secure a victory in a fierce match. This may not be the end of the problem as both teams may face retroactive penalties.
Fornals remembers best in his stint at West Ham in 2019, from Villarreal at £24 million cool. He scored 23 goals in 203 appearances and was part of the legendary team that won the Europa Congress League in 2023.
He was worshipped by Hammers fans – mainly for the rendition of “West Ham Is Large,” following his victory with Sevilla in 2022, sang “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles” during the covid-19 pandemic, and sang his enthusiastic celebrations after his victory with Tottam in 2021.
