Marcus Thuram was given a five-match ban for slashing in his opponent’s face at Saturday’s match between Borussia Monchengladbach and TSG Hoffenheim, the German FA has announced. The French international has been fined € 40,000 for the incident which he described as “unknowingly” in an apology issued on social media.
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Thuram, 23, saw red in the 78th minute of the 2-1 loss against Hoffenheim on Saturday after a spat at Stefan Posch. He had already been fined a month by Borussia Monchengladbach and on Monday the German FA sports court struck Thuram with a five-match ban for “violent behavior” with another one-game ban on parole.
The sports court did not mention the pandemic coronavirus infection in their ruling. Ahead of the resumption of the 2019-2020 Bundesliga season at the time of the pandemic in May, Hertha Berlin striker Salomon Kalou was sacked by his club after a live broadcast showed social distance measures to be removed.
Thuram will be able to return to the squad for the first game of the second half of the season against Borussia Dortmund on 22 January.
Gladbach sports director Max Eberl said on Sunday: “Marcus is devastated and has proved to me that he did not deliberately spade Stefan Posch. He told me, during a feud with Stefan Posch, that he had Unexpected spat after cursing several times in French in the heat of the moment. “
The incident on the pitch went unnoticed, but Thuram, the son of Lilian Thuram, winner of the 1998 World Cup in France, was suspended following a VAR check. The striker later issued an apology on Twitter.
“I treated an opponent in a wrong way and something happened unknowingly and not intentionally. I am sorry for everyone, Stefan Stefanch, my opponents, my teammates, my family and everyone who saw my answer, “he wrote.