Nottingham Forest striker Chris Wood was handed a yellow card for signing autographs following his stunning display for New Zealand against Fiji on Friday.
The 33-year-old was booked after being taken off the pitch following a hat-trick of headers.
Footage spotted Wood heading into the crown rather than the reserve bench in order to sign some autographs for several minutes – but ended up facing a yellow card.
‘Already off the pitch’
Although the Forest striker was already off the pitch and said he was ‘just trying to do something nice and sign for the fans’, rules prohibit football players from entering the stands without permission.
A breach of the FIFA regulation must be met with a caution – as it was in Wood’s case – and could even result in a game stoppage if the player does not return as soon as possible.
His national side are just one win from making a third World Cup ahead of their clash against New Caledonia in the final of Oceania in Auckland on Monday.
Add comment