“He went directly to get him (Barco), he didn’t want to play the ball,” Gonzalez Pirez said. “This is why I was mad. Maybe it’s a red card in any country, but here, no, for this referee. He gave me the same card as the guy who made the kick. It wasn’t equal.”

The second kick occurred near the end line.

De Boer said that Barco seemed fine during the game but felt discomfort in the knee the day after the game.

Villalba, who also is recovering from a ligament injury in his knee after being kicked at New York Red Bulls on May 19, was one of three starters or key reserves who didn’t practice with the team on Monday. The other player, Josef Martinez, is with the Venezuela national team competing at the Copa America in Brazil.

“It’s very unlucky,” de Boer said.

De Boer has started either Dion Pereira or Justin Meram in Villalba’s place.

Atlanta United (8-5-2) is in fourth place in the Eastern Conference, but has the second-most points per game (1.73) in the conference. Toronto (5-7-4) is in seventh.

De Boer said that Julian Gressel practiced well on Monday. He also said that Brandon Vazquez will start Wednesday at striker.

De Boer also said that the decision to loan Jon Gallagher to Aberdeen was easy because he was third on the depth chart at right fullback.

Atlanta United schedule