'Brutal aggression': Argentine footballer arrested after sickening referee assault (VIDEO)

An Argentinian domestic match descended into chaos when irate Luis Maciel of Sporting de Santo Pipó knocked the referee unconscious after being sent off, prompting local police to arrest the player.

Maciel's Sporting de Santo Pipo were trailing rivals Miter 3-1 with ten minutes to go in the final of Liga de Posadas, when referee Gabriel Cortinez issued Sporting player Matías Benítez a second yellow card for alleged insults to rival players. 

This prompted teammate Maciel to attack the referee with a two-punch combination which knocked the official out cold and left him unconscious on the pitch.

Cortinez received lengthy treatment from paramedics while bleeding from the mouth and laying prone on the turf, including being placed in a neck brace, before leaving the stadium in an ambulance. 

Commenting on the assault after the match, Cortinez admitted he couldn't remember anything after looking at his watch to check how much injury time was left in the game.

"I was watching the stopwatch, there was a minute and a half left at the end of the match and then I received that blow that left me asleep. I do not remember anything anymore," he said (via translation).

Maciel was subsequently arrested by local police and taken to the nearest station, but was released a few hours later.

Just last month, Argentine football was under the spotlight due to football violence when the decisive Copa Libertadores final 2nd leg in Buenos Aires was delayed after River Plate fans attacked the team bus of fierce rivals Boca Juniors.