December 22 – Borussia Mönchengladbach striker Marcus Thuram has been banned for five games for spitting in the face of a Hoffenheim opponent in the Bundesliga.
The German football federation said the ban applies to both league games and the German Cup and that a further one-game ban is suspended on condition of good behaviour until December 21, 2021.
Thuram, who was also fined €40,000, spat in defender Stefan Posch’s face from close range on Saturday during an argument over a tackle from Posch. The referee consulted video evidence, sent off Thuram and booked Posch.
Gladbach has also fined Thuram a month’s wages but the club’s sporting director Max Eberl said the incident was uncharacteristic of Thuram, son of French World Cup winner Lilian Thuram.
The 23-year-old was praised in May for taking a knee in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement amid protests over the killing of George Floyd.
“Marcus is devastated and he assured me that he did not deliberately spit at Stefan Posch,” said Eberl. “Marcus made a huge mistake for which he’ll be punished. He remains the person we know and we won’t let him fall. We have known Marcus for almost two years, we know his background and his family. Yesterday’s actions do not represent that.”
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