Pepe: Real Madrid icon considered retirement after wild red card in 2009 | OneFootball

Pepe has picked up 14 red cards in his career, per The Pop Foot.

His wildest sending off came in 2009 while in action for Real Madrid.

On April 21, 2009, Real Madrid welcomed Getafe to the Santiago Bernabeu for their La Liga clash.

Los Blancos desperately needed all three points in their battle with Barcelona for the title.

The score was locked at 2-2 with a few minutes of normal time remaining.

Pepe gave away an 88th minute penalty after pushing Javi Casquero over inside Real Madrid’s box.

The Portuguese defender then lost his head in a truly epic meltdown. A video remembering the incident has gone viral again and you can view it below…

VIDEO: Pepe loses his head after being sent off vs Getafe in 2009

Pepe sent Casquero to the ground and booted him as hard as he could twice.

Pepe then grabbed Casquero’s head and arms and pushed him down into the ground.

He proceeded to stamp on Casquero twice while being confronted by Getafe players.

The Real Madrid defender then turned his attention to Juan Albin and struck him in the face.

Pepe had a go at the linesman and then had to be pushed down the tunnel by his teammates.

He was given a 10-match ban for his actions.

Pepe showed remorse for his behaviour and admitted he was considering giving up football in an emotional statement.

“I’ve been in football several years and it’s been the worst day of my life as a player and as a person,” he told Marca, per The Guardian.

“I’m devastated and very sad. I feel disappointed with myself. The only words I can find right now are to apologise to the players and their families, to the fans and to my team-mates. I didn’t recognise myself at that moment. I lost control for a few minutes. I wanted to win the game so we could continue fighting for the league.

“I’ve seen the incident repeated and I insist I don’t recognise myself… If I have the opportunity to continue playing football, I’m going to try to do things in the best way possible. But if I feel that I’m not in the right state to return to playing, I will continue with my normal life and try to do something else to support my family.

“At this point I have no desire to do anything. I’ve been deeply affected. I’m going to wait and see what happens with the sanction. It’s been very tough for me.

“I’ve acted badly, but I don’t think that my whole career should be judged by one action. I’m very sad and right now I have no desire to get back to playing. Nobody knows how I feel. I’m depressed and I don’t have the words to describe how I feel. The biggest punishment that I could receive is what I’m feeling now.”