Tottenham Hotspur’s Rodrigo Bentancur, an essential player for the Spurs, will continue to participate in the Europa League, with upcoming matches against Roma and Rangers. Amidst a string of poor performances, Tottenham Hotspur is now dealing with a fresh controversy. Bentancur has been handed a seven-match ban from domestic matches following reports that he made a racist comment about his teammate Son Heung-min. The Football Association charged the 27-year-old midfielder with an ‘aggravated breach’ due to his remark.
The suspension will sideline the Uruguayan player until mid-December. The incident, which took place in June, occurred during an interview with a Uruguayan TV reporter. The reporter asked Bentancur, “Can you get me the shirt from the Korean?” Bentancur replied, “Sonny?” The reporter then added, “Or any other champion.” Bentancur responded, “Or any cousin of Sonny, they all look more or less the same.”
Following the incident, Bentancur issued an apology to Son Heung-min and posted a statement on social media. Bentancur expressed his regret, stating, “Sonny brother. I apologise to you for what happened, it was just a very bad joke. You know I love you and I would never disrespect you or hurt you or anyone else! I love you, brother!”
Son Heung-min accepted Bentancur’s apology and shared his perspective, “He apologised straight afterwards when we were on holiday. I was at home, I didn’t even realise what was going on. He just sent me a long message, and you could feel it was coming from his heart. When we came back to the training ground for pre-season, he was really sorry and he almost cried. He apologised in public and personally as well. It felt like he was really sorry. We’re all human, we make mistakes, we learn from it. I love Rodrigo, I love him, I love him. He knows he made a mistake but I have no problem at all. We move on as a team-mate, as a friend, as a brother. We move on together,” he added.
Despite his suspension from domestic matches, Bentancur will be eligible to play in the Europa League, with crucial matches against Roma and Rangers on the horizon. He will miss key Premier League games against Manchester City, Fulham, Bournemouth, Chelsea, Southampton, and Liverpool, as well as the Carabao Cup quarter-final match against Manchester United.
