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.
Bentancur 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.
The Uruguay international 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”.
Latest report from the Daily Mail has now claimed a seven-match suspension has been decided, though it is yet to be officially confirmed by the FA.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Rodrigo Bentancur celebrates scoring (Photo by Steven Paston/PA Images via Getty Images)
“I’ve spoken with Lolo [Bentancur]. He made a mistake, he knows this and has apologised,” Son said in June.
“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, he will remain in matchday contention for Europa League clashes with Roma and Rangers as the ban does not apply to continental football.
Bentancur has started seven of 11 Premier League matches and has become an important figure in Ange Postecoglou’s team.
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.
