What happened leading up to the disallowed goal was this: Renteria left the field to get treatment and change his bloodied jersey after being elbowed in the head by a Santos defender (no foul was called). He re-entered wearing a jersey with no name or number on the back, took a pass from Duncan Oughton on a restart and sent a cross to Iro, who headed the ball into the net.
Rodriguez eventually waved off the goal after a protest from the Santos bench and a brief conference with the fourth official, who serves as a liaison between the benches and the other officials.
It is unclear why Rodriguez did not stop play as soon as Renteria touched the ball. The rule cited in the CONCACAF referee's report states that play may continue after the infraction as long as the offending player "does not interfere" with the play. But Renteria received a pass, dribbled to the penalty area and assisted on the goal.
Renteria appeared to check with the fourth official before the restart to make sure he had permission to play. Replays show that Rodriguez motioned for Renteria to stay on the field after he crossed the sideline but before the restart.
Santos went on to win in the final minute of second-half stoppage time when defender Ivan Estrada scored while the Crew had one player, rookie defender Shaun Francis, off the field being treated for a leg cramp. As it was, the Crew was using a makeshift lineup of tired regulars and little-used reserves in trying to break a four-game losing streak in Mexico.
In general, Major League Soccer teams have struggled in Central America and Mexico since the inception of the Champions League, the regional championship for professional teams, and many have complained about officiating and hostile conditions. MLS teams are 4-18-9 in Central America and 0-20-2 in Mexico.
