By 90min | Created at 2024-11-14 02:15:11 | Updated at 2024-11-24 18:07:34
1 week ago
Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur is set to be hit with a seven-game ban by the Football Association for making a racist remark about South Koreans in the summer.
The Uruguay international was charged by the FA for comments he made in June in relation to Spurs captain Son Heung-min during an interview on television in his homeland.
Bentancur said "they all look the same" when asked to show the difference between Son and his cousin and was accused of bringing the game into disrepute with a breach of FA Rule E3.1, acting in an "improper manner and/or used abusive and/or insulting words".
The Daily Mail report a seven-match suspension has now been decided, though it is yet to be officially confirmed by the FA.
"I've spoken with Lolo [Bentancur]. He made a mistake, he knows this and has apologised," Son said in June.
Bentancur will be banned for his comments about Son / Julian Finney/GettyImages
"Lolo would not mean to ever intentionally say something offensive. We are brothers and nothing has changed at all.
"We're past this, we're united and we will be back together in pre-season to fight for our club as one."
If the ban is implemented during the November international break, Bentancur will not be available in the Premier League until Boxing Day. On top of matches against Manchester City, Fulham, Bournemouth, Chelsea, Southampton and Liverpool, he would also miss the Carabao Cup quarter-final with Manchester United.
However, the former Juventus midfielder will remain in matchday contention for Europa League clashes with Roma and Rangers as the ban does not apply to continental football.
Bentancur has been a regular at the base midfield for manager Ange Postecoglou so far this season, starting seven of 11 Premier League matches. He scored a consolation in Tottenham's grim defeat to Ipswich Town on Sunday but is likely to be replaced by Yves Bissouma, who has netted twice in England's top flight in 2024/25.
The ban will also see the likes of James Maddison, Pape Matar Sarr and Lucas Bergvall earn more minutes, while Dejan Kulusevski will continue as a starter having enjoyed a brilliant start to the campaign.
