SHARE
COPY LINK

FOOTBALL

Leonardo gets indefinite ban over shoulder barge

Paris Saint-Germain sporting director Leonardo was suspended until further notice and Thiago Silva received a two-match ban on Tuesday following altercations with referee Alexandre Castro in Sunday's 1-1 draw with Valenciennes.

Leonardo gets indefinite ban over shoulder barge
PSG football director Leonardo (R centre), shoves the referee (L centre). The Paris club failed to clinch the Ligue 1 title on May 5th. Photo: Ligue1 Football+

Thiago Silva was sent off by Castro in the 43rd minute at the Parc des Princes after placing his hands on the official's chest, a decision which drew the ire of Leonardo, who appeared to deliberately shoulder-barge Castro in the tunnel after the match.

"The [French Football League's disciplinary] committee, following further reports from the referee and (match) delegate, puts the case under investigation and suspends Leonardo from Wednesday May 8th until further notice owing to the seriousness of the facts," read an LFP statement, without specifying when a final decision would be made. 

Leonardo denied the allegations on Monday, telling AFP he had been pushed into Castro.

"I wanted to speak to the official and I waited for him. There were lots of people returning to the changing rooms and when Mr. Castro arrived there was a delegate in front of me trying to block me who pushed me," explained the Brazilian.

"I then, with my back, made contact with the referee. It's hard to see in the footage but in slow motion you can see it."

During the ban Leonardo will be barred from both the touchline and changing room as well as performing any official club duties.

As for Silva, the defender will miss Sunday's fixture at Lyon and the visit of Brest the following week, leaving him available to return for the season finale against Lorient on May 26th.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

RACISM

VIDEO: Spain’s La Liga reviews video of boy racially abusing Vinicius

Spain's La Liga on Monday said it was reviewing a video of a child making racist insults towards Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior during the 2-2 draw with Valencia at the weekend.

VIDEO: Spain's La Liga reviews video of boy racially abusing Vinicius

“We’re in the process of studying and analysing the facts from a legal standpoint to see what we can and should do,” La Liga sources said.

In a video published by a journalist for ESPN Brasil, and picked up by Spanish media, a boy sitting in a woman’s lap can be heard calling Vinicius a “monkey”.

The Brazilian scored twice for Madrid as his team recovered from two goals down at Mestalla on Saturday.

Vinicius raised his fist in a “Black Power” salute after the first of his two goals at a ground where he was racially abused last season. Valencia subsequently banned three people from the stadium for life.

The 23-year-old has become a symbol of the fight against discrimination in Spanish football after suffering racist abuse on many occasions, and he was jeered repeatedly by home supporters on Saturday.

Jude Bellingham was sent off after the final whistle against Valencia for protesting after the referee blew the final whistle right before the England midfielder headed home what he thought was the winning goal.

READ ALSO: Football star Vinicius highlights racist behaviour from Spanish fans

SHOW COMMENTS