midway through the second half

Panagiotis Kone is probably hoping he'll never have to encounter Nemanja Matic on a football pitch for a long, long time after the latter recently reduced him to tears.

The incident occured during Greece's 2-0 friendly defeat at home to Serbia on Tuesday night.

After being struck in the face by a late Matic challenge midway through the second half, Greece international Kone reacted furiously by preparing himself to launch a punch towards the towering 26-year-old.

VIDEO Scroll down to see Panagiotis Kone go to punch Nemanja Matic before crying

Greece midfielder Panagiotis Kone (left) was reduced to tears after reacting angrily to a Nemanja Matic tackle

Serbia midfielder Matic (centre) caught Kone in the face with a late challenge midway through the second half

Matic's challenge (left) caused Kone to fall to the ground during their friendly

Kone (left) clutched his face after being struck by Matic on Tuesday night

After falling to the floor Kone (left) immediately squared up to Matic ready to land a punch on his face

However, as soon as he squared up to the imposing Serbian the midfielder inexplicably broke down in tears - a wise move considering the alternative would have seen Kone red carded and a potential mass brawl between the two players.

The emotional outburst saw Kone having to be dragged away from Matic by his Greece team-mates in one of the most bizarrest of incidents.

Matic, who has forged a reputation as tough player, afforded a wry smile at Kone's expense in the process as the game was temporarily paused.

And although Matic could see the funny side, the whole night was no laughing moment for Kone as goals from Radoslav Petrovic and Nemanja Gudelj condemned Greece to another defeat during the international break.

National youth coaches sat in for both teams Tuesday, after Greece's disastrous 1-0 loss to the Faeroe Islands on Friday saw coach Claudio Ranieri suspended indefinitely, while Dick Advocaat quit the Serbia post after losing 3-1 to Denmark.

Kone (centre) had to be dragged away by his Greece team-mates as he broke down in tears