Altidore suspension for 1st leg of conference final upheld

By AP
Published

NEW YORK (AP) Toronto forward Jozy Altidore's one-game suspension was upheld by an independent Major League Soccer panel, and he will miss the first leg of his team's Eastern Conference final at Columbus on Tuesday.

Altidore and Sacha Kljestan of the New York Red Bulls were ejected for a halftime confrontation during their playoff match Nov. 5. Kljestan will serve his penalty in the opening game of the 2018 regular season.

MLS said Thursday the decision to uphold the discipline, issued for violent conduct, was made by a three-person panel made up of representatives of the U.S. Soccer Federation, the Canadian Soccer Association and the Professional Referee Organization, which oversees the league's on-field officials.