Gregoritsch with big fair play action during Hamburg v Augsburg
Augsburg's Michael Gregoritsch reacts after missing a chance to scoreduring the German Bundesliga soccer match between Hamburger SV and FC Augsburg at Volksparkstadion. Gregor Fischer/dpa Augsburg forward Michael Gregoritsch had a curious exchange with referee Deniz Aytekin during the Bundesliga match at Hamburg on Saturday. Shortly before the break, Aytekin awarded a dangerous free-kick to Augsburg after he understood that Hamburg's Fabio Vieira had fouled Gregoritsch.
However, TV footage showed that Gregoritsch wasn't fouled, but slipped and fell instead. The player came clean and explained to Aytekin what really happened. The referee overturned his decision and thanked the player for his honesty.
"If Gregoritsch admitted that it wasn't a foul - or pointed that out to the referee, as it looked like he did at one point - then that's obviously very fair and deserves to be highlighted," Hamburg sporting director Claus Costa told broadcasters Sky. "It's obviously good for us that it wasn't a foul and that the free kick didn't happen. " The game ended in a 1-1 draw, with Hamburg playing with 10 men since the 64th minute after Miro Muheim was sent off.