THIS is the shocking moment a player appeared to BITE a rival during a Championship match on Sunday.
Milutin Osmajic of Preston is alleged to have sunk his teeth into the back of Blackburn’s Owen Beck, who its claimed was left with visible bite marks.
Blackburn star Beck, who is the great-nephew of Liverpool legend Ian Rush, was embroiled in a fierce melee with Preston players during their clash at Deepdale on Sunday.
The clash reached boiling point in the 88th minute with Preston on the ball deep in the Blackburn half.
After Blackburn were briefly being dispossessed, stars from both teams put their bodies on the line in an effort to win the loose ball.
Beck, 22, sparked fury from North End stars when he viciously kicked out at Duane Holmes as he dribbled the ball past him after referee, Matt Donohue, had blown his whistle.
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Preston’s Osmajic took huge offence to the act and grabbed on to Beck’s shirt with both hands.
He then moved his head towards the back of Beck’s neck, with the Rovers defender then swiftly trying to move away after appearing to feel something on his neck.
After being let go, he was then seen holding the back of his neck and telling the ref: “He just bit me.”
However, the ref ignored Beck’s accusations and instead sent the Blackburn player off for his swipe against Holmes and his subsequent role in sparking the melee.
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It is not clear whether Osmajic did indeed bite Liverpool loanee Beck.
The punishment for biting another player is severe.
In April 2013, former Liverpool ace Luis Suarez was handed a four-month ban from football after he was found guilty of biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic.
If found guilty, 25-year-old Osmajic can also expect a hefty ban to be forthcoming.
On the incident, Blackburn boss John Eustace said: “That’s what happens in local derbies, you can see the kid had taken a big chunk out of his neck.”
He added: “He’s got a big bite mark on the back of his neck. It’s a shame the referee didn’t see that as well.
“He’s got a big bite mark. He has been in and shown the lads. He’s very disappointed to be sent off and you don’t expect him to have that either.
“He’s a bit quiet in there and a bit shaken up. I don’t know if he spoke to the referee, I’m not sure if it was before or after the red. He might want to speak to the officials about it.
“It’s a very serious incident, nobody likes to be bitten. Everyone is angry about it, it’s not a nice situation to be in. I’m sure the right people will see it and deal with it.”
Preston view
Meanwhile, Preston manager Paul Heckingbottom said: “No, I’ve not seen it or spoken to John (Eustace) or anyone about that.
“I’ve just been told there, when I did the Sky interview. Listen, all I can say is that there is no place for that and we know we can’t do that.
“Mistimed tackles, things like that are part and parcel of the game – you accept them.
“Anything that is not, we know how that’s dealt with.
“But, I have not seen anything so I am just going off you saying there has been an incident. I’ll wait and see what happens.”
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The match ended 0-0, with Preston’s Sam Greenwood also sent off in the first half.
The point leaves Blackburn four points off of league leaders West Brom, while Preston have climbed out of the relegation zone.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
