Why PSG could be without their manager for Tottenham UEFA Super Cup clash
Luis Enrique may be banned from the UEFA Super Cup clash against Tottenham and may not even be allowed to coach Paris Saint-Germain in the lead-up to the match after he was involved in a controversial moment after the Club World Cup final loss to Chelsea.
Thomas Frank’s first competitive game in charge as Tottenham’s head coach will be the Super Cup clash against PSG in Udine on August 13.
Spurs will take a lot more confidence into that game after witnessing how their London rivals demolished the Parisians on the counter-attack in the Club World Cup final, scoring three goals while also managing to keep a clean sheet.
What is under the scanner is what followed the full-time whistle, with tensions boiling over at the MetLife Stadium following an altercation between Gianluigi Donnarumma and Andrey Santos.
New Chelsea signing Joao Pedro arrived to protect Santos, and he fell to the ground after being shoved in the face by Enrique, who had to be held back by PSG defender Presnel Kimpembe.
Luis Enrique could be hit with a total coaching ban
The Sun reveals that FIFA is now set to open a formal disciplinary probe into Enrique’s behaviour after the Club World Cup final.
However, the world football governing body will not be able to impose any specific match sanctions as PSG will not play any games under their jurisdiction until the InterContinental Cup in December.
The Super Cup, including all other European competitions that PSG play, falls under the jurisdiction of UEFA, while their domestic matches are administered by the French Football Federation.
As a result, FIFA are set to impose a time penalty, which would see Enrique banned from all training grounds and matchday work for a fixed period, which will come as a massive boost to the Lilywhites ahead of the Club World Cup final.
Referring to Enrique’s behaviour at the MetLife Stadium, Spanish referee Eduardo Gonzalez told The Sun: “Of course, you can be sanctioned. There’s a difference, the red and yellow cards in the tournament will expire. But FIFA can sanction him with time.
“So, if Luis Enrique is given a one-month ban, he would miss any games in that month. What’s more, he wouldn’t even be able to train the team. You can’t touch an opponent’s face. That’s already a humiliating issue, that you have to go over and punch a player in the face when the game is over.
“I don’t look at names, I look at the action, and if we look at the action, it’s punishable. Fifa is above Uefa. If FIFA tells you there are three matches it’s in their competition, but since in this tournament the yellow and red cards ended, FIFA can, on the other hand, sanction players based on time.”
Luis Enrique plays down the incident ahead of Tottenham clash in UEFA Super Cup
Tottenham Hotspur fans will certainly be hoping FIFA come down hard on Enrique as the North Londoners are going to need all the help they can get in the Super Cup clash against the European champions.
However, in his post-match press conference, the PSG boss played down the incident and insisted that he only intended to prevent both sets of players from brawling.
Enrique said (via The Metro): “At the end of the match, there is a lot of tension. There was a situation that I believe could have been avoided by everyone. I think that is logical.
“I am going to prevent my players from going any further in that brawl and from then on there is pushing and shoving by everyone. I think and I repeat, that is not the best thing to do. It’s the result of the tension, the result of the situation of the match and I have nothing more to add.”
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