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Tottenham set to appeal FA ban as Rodrigo Bentancur aims for Liverpool return

Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur
-Credit: (Image: CameraSport via Getty Images)


Rodrigo Bentancur could be available for next month's Premier League clash against Liverpool after Tottenham Hotspur confirmed they appealed the seven-game ban he was hit with for making a racist remark about team-mate Son Heung-min.

The Uruguayan was hit with a lengthy ban by the Football Association earlier this week for comments he made about Son in an interview back in April. As well as being banned for six Premier League games and one League Cup match, Bentancur was hit with a £100,000 fine.

However, Tottenham confirmed on Wednesday afternoon that they have challenged the length of the ban passed down to the 27-year-old rather than the guilty verdict.

"We can confirm that the Club has appealed against the length of Rodrigo Bentancur’s FA suspension, issued earlier this week," a Spurs statement said. "While we accept the guilty finding against Rodrigo by the independent regulatory commission, we believe the subsequent sanction is severe.

"Rodrigo will remain suspended from domestic competitions while the appeal is heard and the Club will make no further comment during this time."

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If the North Londoners' appeal is successful, the midfielder would still be in line to serve a six-game suspension after rules introduced by the FA in 2020 proposed a minimum ban for individuals found guilty of racist abuse, meaning Bentancur's return could come when Tottenham host Liverpool in the Premier League on December 22.

Asked about the midfielder's situation in September, manager Ange Postecoglou said that Bentancur will have to face whatever punishment is handed down to him.

"In terms of Sonny and Rodri, they had a discussion about the whole incident. Both players understand and respect each other’s position and Rodri has already apologised for what he said. Sonny has accepted that and accepted the fact that one of his team-mates and a person he is close with has made a mistake," said Postecoglou

"If we are talking about having a society that is understanding and tolerant of everything, we also must show that to people who make mistakes as Rodri has made in his time.

"We know him very well, a lot better than most because we spend every day with him and understand the kind of person he is.

"We understand that even though he is a great guy and a fantastic team-mate, he has made a big error this time and he has got to take the punishment but also we need to give him the opportunity to learn from it and atone from it and hopefully others learn from it as well."