Tottenham star Rodrigo Bentancur has been banned for seven matches by the FA over an alleged racist remark about team-mate Son Heung-min during an interview.
The Uruguay midfielder was charged by the FA with alleged misconduct over the remark, which was made in an interview with local station Canal 10 in July.
After he was asked to show the shirt of a Spurs player, Bentancur was alleged to have replied: “Sonny’s? It could be Sonny’s cousin too as they all look the same.”
Son confirmed that Bentancur apologised to him privately, with the midfielder also posting a public apology to his Instagram page.
Last week, it was reported that Spurs were braced for the 27-year-old to receive a seven-match ban, which would see him miss crucial matches against Manchester City, Liverpool and a Carabao Cup quarter-final against Manchester United.
The FA have now confirmed that Bentancur has been banned for those seven matches, and have included their written reasons for the sanction.
The Uruguay midfielder was charged by the FA with alleged misconduct over a remark he made on a television programme in July about team-mate Son Heung-min.
In an interview with Uruguayan station Canal 10, Bentancur was asked to show the shirt of a Spurs player, and allegedly replied: “Sonny’s? It could be Sonny’s cousin too as they all look the same.”
He said: “He knew. He apologised straight afterwards when we had holiday. I was at home – I didn’t even realise what was going on. He sent me a long message and you could feel it was coming from his heart.
“When we came back from pre-season, he felt really sorry and he almost cried when he apologised publicly and personally.”
As well as his personal apology to Son, the midfielder also posted a lengthy apology on his official Instagram account.
Bentancur faced calls to be hit with a lengthy ban by the FA for the remark.
And it has now been reported by the Daily Mirror that Tottenham are prepared for the Uruguayan to receive a seven-match ban from domestic competitions.
Such a ban would mean he is eligible for Europa League fixtures, but would not be available for Premier League or Carabao Cup matches.
What games would Bentancur miss if he’s given seven-game ban?
Bentancur would miss crucial upcoming fixtures against Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City, as well as the Carabao Cup quarter-final against Manchester United. He would return on Boxing Day.
The FA’s rules surrounding misconduct, which covers E3.1 and E3.2, states: “[Rule E3.1] A Participant shall at all times act in the best interests of the game and shall not act in any manner which is improper or brings the game into disrepute or use any one, or a combination of, violent conduct, serious foul play, threatening, abusive, indecent or insulting words or behaviour.
A breach of Rule E3.1 is an ‘Aggravated Breach’ were it includes a reference, whether express or implied, to any one or more of the following:- ethnic origin, colour, race, nationality, religion or belief, gender, gender reassignment, sexual orientation or disability.”
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