Play was stopped for over ten minutes after an assistant referee was struck in the face with a ball from point blank range in the CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal.
The freak incident stemmed from a tussle for possession between Canada's Kamal Miller and the USMNT's Gianluca Busio, which resulted in the former clearing his lines in the direction of the stands. However, linesman Christian Espinosa found himself in an unfortunate spot as the ball ended up hitting him directly in the face in what was a dramatic scene.
Such was the power behind Miller's clearance that the assistant referee soon appeared to be in some distress, sinking to his knees as the impact appeared to have drawn blood. The stricken official was seen covering his face and referee Marco Ortiz was left with little option but to bring play to a halt.
