In the second leg of the Mexican Apertura 2011 Final between Tigers and Santos, FIFA referee Marco Rodriguez issued 3 straight red cards and 7 yellow cards. In min. 56, Rodriguez showed two yellow cards simultaneously, one for Hector Mancilla and one for Carlos Morales.
Former FIFA World Cup Final referee, Edgardo Codesal, felt that the Mexican soccer tends to demonize Marco Rodriguez. Although he considered that Oswaldo Sanchez only warranted a caution, not the red card, Codesal felt that this was the only big mistake of Rodriguez: "It was only a reckless foul by Oswaldo Sanchez, who tackled with his feet forward, but it seemed that he was looking sideways and did not see the opposing player". At the same time, he criticized the lack of seriousness showed by Marco Rodriguez. "I think it is an absolute farce to show two yellow cards simultaneously, one in each hand… well that is characteristic of Rodriguez, who want to be different, to be the protagonist of the match, which is different than my concept of what the personality of a serious referee should be, but that did not influence the final outcome", said Codesal. Another former FIFA World Cup referee, Arturo Brizio, considered that Marco Rodriguez could have resolved the situation with other resources. "The teaching graphics and photos show how the referee must show the card, one by one, not by showing them simultaneously", he said. Brizio recalled that Rodriguez had 3 finals where he had to send off 3 players, but he should have done it without showing off: "I think that the instructors need to sit down with Marco and talk to him, read him the book and try to orient and redirect his career. At times, Rodriguez seems to be a reliable referee and then suddenly…"
By sending off 3 players (Sanchez, Baloy and Jimenez) in the 2011 final Tigers – Santos, Marco Rodriguez evened its own record of Apertura 2005 (with 3 red cards as well: Serafín, Perez, Gonzalez) and stayed at one of the Apertura 2003, when he sent off 4 players (Sancho, Rergis, Soares, Huiqui). The other referees who sent off players in the Mexican finals were Benito Archundia and Arturo Brizio, with 2 red cards each in the 1997 finals.
