Lukas Podolski managed to get himself sent off in his own charity football match

Lukas Podolski recently got himself sent off in a charity football tournament he set up after furiously confronting the referee.

The former Arsenal star now plays for Gornik Zabrze in Poland, taking part in the Schauinsland Reisen Cup against five other teams.

Podolski's been involved in the tournament for several years as his professional career comes to a close.

During a semi-final clash with Rot-Weiss Essen, the ex-Germany international lost his cool.

With the game 2-2, Podolski dragged his opponent to the ground while through on goal. It looked like a necessary tackle, as the Rot-Weiss forward only had the goalkeeper in front of him.

Podolski was the last man, however. It gave the official no choice but to give him his marching orders. The 37-year-old and his teammates couldn't believe it.

After arguing with the referee, Podolski stormed off the pitch as he was officially given the red card. Because it was an indoor tournament, the World Cup winner comically stepped over the advertising boards to watch the game just metres away.

Podolski didn't stop there. He then decided to throw water towards the official while the game was still going on.

Rot-Weiss used the extra man to their advantage, picking up the win. Podolski argued with the referee more at full-time, having to be calmed down by a member of the coaching staff.

Podolski did later apologise to the official. The tournament, eventually won by Rot-Weiss, managed to raise €2 million for good causes.

A popular figure at the Emirates Stadium when he first arrived in 2012, Podolski scored 19 times as Arsenal won the FA Cup in 2014, their first trophy in nine years.

He saw his game time drastically decrease following the arrival of Alexis Sanchez later that year, opting to join Inter Milan on loan. Podolski eventually made a permanent move to Galatasaray in 2015.

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Speaking about his time in the Premier League, Podolski told FourFourTwo: "I didn’t get enough game time. I felt that I performed well and didn’t get the minutes I deserved.

If you look at my stats, I played in about 80 matches and was directly involved in a lot of goals by scoring or assisting. My relationship with the fans and players was positive.

"We won the FA Cup in 2014, which was the club’s first trophy for quite a few years. I liked living in London, my family enjoyed it too."

Topics: Germany

Daniel Marland

Daniel is a social editor for SPORTbible after moving from the writing team. Nearly scored past Stormzy at Old Trafford once.

@DanMarland_