Uruguayan midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur received a seven-match suspension on Monday for making a derogatory comment about South Koreans, referring to his Tottenham teammate Son Heung-min.
The English Football Association (FA) announced that an independent commission also fined Bentancur £100,000 ($126,000). The player has the right to appeal the decision.
The ban applies only to domestic matches, allowing him to represent his London club in the Europa League.
Tottenham is set to face Roma in the tournament’s group stage on 28 November. During a Uruguayan television interview in June, Bentancur was asked about a Tottenham player’s jersey and responded, “Sonny’s?”
He further remarked it could be Son’s cousin because “more or less they are all the same.” Bentancur later apologised on Instagram, calling it a “very bad joke” and insisting he would “never disrespect or hurt” Son.
Son accepted the apology, acknowledging that his teammate had made a mistake and did not intend to be offensive.
“We are brothers and nothing has changed at all,” Son said in June.
“We’re past this, we’re united, and we will be back together in preseason to fight for our club as one.”
The FA stated that the offence was aggravated due to “reference to nationality and/or race and/or ethnic origin.”
Additionally, Bentancur must attend a “face-to-face education program,” details of which will be provided later. He is required to complete the course by 11 March next year.
“If the player fails to complete the program satisfactorily in that period, he will be immediately suspended from all domestic club football until such time as the mandatory program is completed,” the FA said.
Frances Ibiefo
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