Lucerne striker Lezcano gets eight-game ban for referee assault

Published Sep. 24, 2015 9:41 a.m. ET

foxsports

BERN, Switzerland --

The Swiss Football League has banned Lucerne forward Dario Lezcano for eight matches after he assaulted a referee who had sent him off.

Lezcano, a 25-year-old from Paraguay, used his forehead to lightly touch the face of referee Fedayi San, who had shown him a second yellow card.

The player then pushed the referee's chest, knocking the red card out of his hand.

The incident happened in the 88th minute of a 3-3 draw with Grasshoppers on Sept. 13.

Imposing the ban on Thursday, the league said in a statement that ''respect for referees is a fundamental part of the game.''

Lezcano, who is playing his eighth season in Switzerland, can appeal the sanction.