An FA statement said: "A three-person independent regulatory commission today upheld the FA's claim that a suspension of three matches was clearly insufficient and the player will serve a further seven first-team matches in addition to the standard three. The suspension begins with immediate effect."
In the immediate aftermath of the decision, Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre said both the club and player were "shocked and disappointed" by the "severity" of the FA's decision. In a statement, he added that Liverpool would "await the written reasons tomorrow before making any further comment."
The ban means Suarez will miss Liverpool's four remaining games of this season, before serving a further six game suspension at the start of the next.
It is expected that the Uruguay international will fight the lengthy ban by denying the FA's claim that a standard three-match ban is insufficient given the extraordinary nature of the incident. He has until midday on Friday to appeal the additional suspension.
Suarez did accept the FA's charge of violent conduct following the clash with Ivanovic during Liverpool's 2-2 draw with Chelsea at Anfield on Sunday. The Liverpool forward was clearly seen biting the arm of the Chelsea defender in the second half and he has already accepted a fine by his club and offered an apology to Ivanovic.
However, when initially charging Suarez, the FA gave warning that the striker could contest any decision made by the Independent Regulatory Commission, which was made today during a video conference call.
Some expected Suarez to be banned for seven games, as he was in the Netherlands when he bit PSV Eindhoven's Otman Bakkal during his time with Ajax, although the panel have exercised their power to hand out a suspension in excess of that figure.
The 26-year-old has been hit with a lengthy ban before. He was suspended for eight matches after being found guilty of racially abusing Patrice Evra. That he received a heavier punishment for biting than racism may raise some questions.
That Suarez contested the right of the panel to impose a ban of longer than three games suggests a further challenge to the FA's authority from the player and Liverpool, who were widely criticized in light of their handling of the Suarez-Evra racism row last season. Ayre's comments suggests that will be the case.
The independent commission panel contained at least one former player, although there was no QC present. The members will have gone through paper submissions from the FA and from the player before deciding on the punishment.
The referee Kevin Friend missed the incident at Anfield on Sunday, leading to retrospective action and the violent conduct charge.
Suarez accepted the fine he was handed by Liverpool and immediately offered to pay it to the Hillsborough Families Support Group fund.
The panel could have imposed a ban of up to 12 games, given its wide range of powers. Joey Barton received such a suspension last season when sent off for Queen's Park Rangers.
Suarez and Liverpool's decision to reject that a three-game suspension would be insufficient was seen as a tactic should the Uruguayan be given a lengthy ban. Now that he has, they will likely cite that position to argue down the length of the ban in an appeal.
Suarez will remain eligible for the Professional Footballers' Association Player of the Year award, for which he has been shortlisted, with the announcement on Sunday.
No comments:
Post a Comment