Villarreal player sent off after paying tribute to club's late vice president

Barcelona, Oct 23, 2022 (AFP) - Villarreal winger Alex Baena was sent off for lifting his shirt to reveal a tribute message to late club vice president Jose Manuel Llaneza during a 2-1 win over Almeria in La Liga on Sunday.

Llaneza passed away on Thursday after a battle with leukaemia and Baena, who scored the equalizer in his team's win, wanted to pay tribute.

He lifted up his shirt and revealed another underneath on which there was a message, reading: "Thanks for everything, Llaneza."

Referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea issued him a second yellow card, leaving Villarreal with 10 men.

Despite their disadvantage, the hosts still managed to snatch the three points at the Ciutat de Valencia stadium thanks to Nicolas Jackson's 94th-minute goal.

"This shirt is worth a million sending-offs," wrote Villarreal on Twitter at the end of the game, posting a photo of Baena displaying the message.

There was a minute's silence for Llaneza before the game, as there had been at Camp Nou when Barcelona beat Villarreal 3-0 on Thursday.

"His loss hurts a lot," said Villarreal president Fernando Roig on Movistar. "We have gone through many difficult moments (together) and all of the Villarreal family will remember him for all our lives."