Mason Greenwood was accused of insulting a referee in the Spanish league on Tuesday, becoming one of three Getafe players sent off in a 2-0 loss to Rayo Vallecano.

The referee said in his post-match report that Greenwood insulted him in the 50th minute with an expletive in English, something that the British player and the Spanish club denied.

“He doesn’t speak Spanish very well, he told me that he was saying something else,” Getafe coach Jose Bordalas said in his post-match interview.

“He was frustrated because the referee was not calling any fouls on him, but he never offended anyone. It was just a comment that he made.”

Referee Jorge Figueroa Vazquez also said in his report that, after being sent off, Greenwood made a gesture pointing to his head and expressing his disagreement with the decision.

Greenwood is playing with Getafe on a loan from Manchester United, which he left at the end of last season following a criminal investigation into a possible attempted rape that was closed by prosecutors.

Getafe also lost defender Damián Suárez for allegedly insulting the assistant referee moments after he was substituted in the 70th.

The hosts had been playing a man down from the 40th after forward Juanmi Latasa was sent off with a second yellow card.

Sergio Camello scored in first-half stoppage time and shortly after halftime to help Rayo end an eight-match winless streak in the Spanish league.