Mohammed Kudus escapes booking after shirt removal, later reveals why Referee didn't book him: Watch

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In football, there are certain things that can lead to a yellow card, and one of them is opening the shirt while celebrating a goal.

But in a unique incident, Ajax player Mohammed Kudus didn't receive a yellow card despite opening his shirt while celebrating a goal. The unique yet heartfelt incident occurred in the Dutch top-tier football on Sunday (February 19).

What Happened?

It was the league game between Ajax and Sparta Rotterdam in the Eredivisie, and Ajax were won the game 4-0. In the 90th minute, Ajax winger Mohammed Kudus scored a goal from a direct free-kick, and celebrated by removing his shirt. But he was not shown a yellow card by the referee.

He had a message in his inner apparel, which was a tribute to his Ghana teammate Christian Atsu, who recently lost his life in the Turkey earthquake.

Why Mohammed Kudus didn't get the Yellow Card?

The player was asked about his celebration after the match and Kudus revealed he wanted to remember Atsu and showed his tribute with the celebration. Kudus was in talks with the referee after the celebration and the player revealed the referee Pol van Boekel understood the 'bigger situation than football' and decided to keep his card in his pocket.

"We are footballers, but this is beyond football. The Ref just told me that it is now allowed, but he understands this is just a bigger situation than football," Kudus said after the match.

Kudus went on to thank the Referee for understanding from a humane perspective.

Ajax closed the gap with Dutch League leaders Feyenoord with the win. The Amsterdam outfit currently sit 2nd in the table with 46 points, three points behind the leaders Feyenoord.