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Ange Postecoglou breaks silence on Rodrigo Bentancur FA charge following Son Heung-min comments

Ange Postecoglou has opened up on Rodrigo Bentancur's FA charge
-Credit: (Image: Visionhaus/Getty Images)


Ange Postecoglou has admitted that Rodrigo Bentancur is "well aware of the ramifications" after he was charged by the FA over his comments regarding Tottenham teammate Son Heung-min earlier in the summer. The Spurs midfielder could possibly now face a ban of between six and 12 matches if his FA charge is upheld.

Following the news that emerged on Thursday, Postecoglou was quizzed about Bentancur when previewing this weekend's North London Derby and he revealed that the club "need to let the process play out".

"I guess not unexpected from our perspective as we kind of knew that it's something the league would look at and we need to let the process sort of play out now," admitted the Australian. "Rodrigo's well aware of the ramifications of any outcome from the panel but we'll just wait and see what they come out with."

He added: "In terms of Sonny and Rodri, I think they had their kind of discussion about the whole incident and I think both players understand and respect each other's position and Rodri's already apologised for what he said and Sonny has accepted that and accepted the fact that one of his teammates, a person he is close to, has made a mistake.

"Beyond that, I don't know what you mean by the real world. We all live in the same world, whether you're a footballer or anyone down the street, we all live in the same world and we all kind of understand the ramifications of our actions irrespective of who we represent. Ultimately we represent ourselves as people and you try along the way as human beings we try to do the right thing all the time but it doesn't always happen and we all make mistakes.

"I've said before for me it's not just about punishment, it's the opportunity for people to atone, to learn because if we're talking about having a society that's kind of understanding and tolerant of everything we also must show that to people who make mistakes, as Rodri has made this time.

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"We kind of know him very well and a lot better than most because we spend every day with him and we understand the kind of person he is and we understand that even though he's a great guy and a fantastic teammate, he's made a big error this time and he's got to take the punishment but also we need to make sure that we give him the opportunity to atone from it, learn from it and hopefully others learn from it as well."

The FA charge came about after Bentancur, in an interview broadcast in June, attempted to make a joke when a reporter asked for a shirt from one of his teammates.

The journalist asked: "Can you get me the shirt from the Korean?" to which Bentancur asked "Sonny?" and the journalist said "Or any other champion?" Bentancur replied: "Or any cousin of Sonny, they all look more or less the same!" to which the reporter replied "Yes, of course!!"

A statement from the FA on Thursday read: "Rodrigo Bentancur has been charged with an alleged breach of FA Rule E3 for misconduct in relation to a media interview. It’s alleged that the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder has breached FA Rule E3.1 as he acted in an improper manner and/or used abusive and/or insulting words and/or brought the game into disrepute.

"It’s further alleged that this constitutes an “aggravated breach” which is defined in FA Rule E3.2, as it included a reference, whether express or implied, to nationality and/or race and/or ethnic origin. Rodrigo Bentancur has until Thursday 19 September 2024 to provide a response to this charge."

While Bentancur can play in the mean time, after speaking to the FA football.london understands that match-based sanctions of six to 12 games are recommended to regulatory commissions for almost all 'aggravated breaches' of FA Rule E3 that are a first offence by individual participants.

The Spurs midfielder has the opportunity to accept or deny the charge. If he accepts, the commission will go on to decide on sanction or sanctions. If Bentancur denies it, the commission will decide whether to uphold or dismiss the charge, and if the former they would also decide the sanction or sanctions.

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