Carl Haworth of Canada (top) battles for the ball with Elman Rivas of El Salvador during their CONCACAF Olympic qualifying soccer match in Nashville, Tennessee, March 22, 2012. REUTERS/Harrison McClaryHarrison McClary/Reuters
Being bitten gave Canadian soccer player Carl Haworth something to chew on.
Haworth was issued a yellow card for shoving Alexander Larin during Canada's 0-0 draw with El Salvador at the CONCACAF men's Olympic qualifying tournament Thursday.
As referee Walter Lopez of Guatemala rushed over to brandish the card, Haworth gestured to Lopez and seemed to be holding his left sleeve.
As it turns out, Haworth was upset that the 19-year-old Larin had bitten him.
"One of the El Salvador defenders actually bit my arm so I just kind of gave him a push away from me," said Haworth, who was an unused substitute in Canada 2-0 over the United States on Saturday.
"I guess the ref saw the retaliation and just gave me the booking for it."
The bite left a clear mark on Haworth's shoulder. Canadian officials took a picture of the mark and got a full doctor's report that they presented to CONCACAF along with video of the incident.
Whether CONCACAF takes any supplemental discipline remains to be seen, but Larin got the start for El Salvador on Saturday as they beat Cuba 4-0. Larin picked up an assist on one of their goals.
"The bite was hard enough for me to react," said Haworth. "I should have stayed calm but I retaliated and shouldn't have."
Haworth said he's never been bitten in a game and that Larin didn't say anything either before or after the incident.
He also joked that he kept his distance from Larin at the end of the game.