What did Tottenham star Rodrigo Bentancur say that could lead to lengthy ban from the FA?
A Tottenham midfielder is staring down the barrel of a lengthy ban from the FA - after making an alleged racist remark on TV.
Rodrigo Bentancur has been charged by the FA for a comment he made while appearing on TV in his native Uruguay in June - and now multiple media outlets are suggesting he will be forced to the sidelines for what he said.
Bentancur has played 10 games in the Premier League so far this season, making three of those appearances from the bench. He’s scored just one goal, grabbing a consolation in Spurs’ 2-1 loss to Ipswich Town last weekend.
According to the Daily Mail, his controversial comment earlier this year will lead to a lengthy absence, which could see him sitting out seven matches.
When he appeared on the Uruguayan TV show, Bentancur was asked for the shirt of a Tottenham player, and asked if it was “Sonny’s” - referring to his South Korean teammate Son Heung-Min.
He then said it could have been Son’s cousin, adding: “More or less they are all the same.”
The FA has previously confirmed that they charged the midfielder for an “aggrevated breach” - and reportedly are now close to dishing out a punishment.
Son, who is Tottenham’s captain, has not taken the comments to heart. He said: “At the moment because of the FA process I can't say much about it - but I love Rodrigo, I love him. We've a lot of good memories since we started playing together when he joined.
“He knew and he apologised straight afterwards. We were on holiday. I was at home. I didn't even realise what was going on when he sent me a long message and you could feel it was coming from his heart.
“When we came back for pre-season he felt really sorry, and almost cried when he apologised publicly and personally as well. He felt like he was really sorry.
“We are all human and all make mistakes and we learn from it.”