Big punishment for Bentancur over Son comments
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Reading Time: 2min | Tue. 19.11.24. | 00:00
The Uruguayan international will play only one game for Tottenham until 2025
The Premier League has rules that must be followed, even if they sometimes seem questionable. Rodrigo Bentancur has been sanctioned with a suspension from playing in Premier League matches almost until the end of the calendar year for Tottenham, due to what league officials deemed to be a case of racism in his remarks.
⚪️🇰🇷 Son: “I've spoken with Rodrigo Bentancur. He made a mistake, he knows this and has apologised”.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 20, 2024
“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… pic.twitter.com/cmdk68DT9S
During an interview, when asked by a journalist if he could get Son Heung-min’s jersey, the Uruguayan made a comment interpreted as offensive:
“Son’s (jersey) or his cousin’s? To me, they all look more or less the same” he said jokingly, referring to the South Korean player.
Although the recording shows it was meant as a lighthearted comment, Premier League officials judged it as an insult to the South Korean international, interpreting Bentancur’s words as discriminatory. Whether the remark was directed at Koreans specifically or Asians in general is less important than the fact that such matters are being addressed and penalized.
As a result, Bentancur will miss Tottenham’s next seven Premier League matches, including games against Manchester City, Fulham, Bournemouth, Chelsea, Southampton, Liverpool, and Nottingham Forest. He will only be eligible to return for the final match of 2024, when Newcastle visits London. The ban does not apply to Europa League matches, so he will still be available for those fixtures. In addition to the suspension, Bentancur has been fined 120,000 euros and will need to be more careful about his words in the future.
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