Slavia Prague defender Ondrej Kudela has been banned for ten games by UEFA for racially abusing Glen Kamara, while the Rangers midfielder has received a three-game ban.
Ondrej Kudela Banned for Ten Games While Glen Kamara Banned for Three
Kudela Handed Lengthy Ban Over ‘racist Behaviour’
The Czech defender had been alleged to have racially abused Glen Kamara during a Europa League Round of 16 clash on March 18.
He had denied the allegation but had admitted to ‘insulting’ Kamara, which led to a one-game provisional ban being handed to the centre-back. He missed Slavia’s first-leg quarter-final clash with Arsenal in the Europa League serving this ban.
UEFA released a statement which explained the decision, stating Kudela has been banned “for the next ten (10) UEFA club and representative team competition matches for which he would otherwise be eligible to play, for racist behaviour, which includes the one-match provisional suspension served by the player during SK Slavia Praha’s 2020/21 UEFA Europa League quarter-final first leg match against Arsenal FC on 8 April 2021.”
Kudela will now miss the second-leg of Slavia’s quarter-final with Arsenal and any other games his side plays in the tournament this season.
The ban also includes EURO 2020 fixtures, meaning Kudela will be unavailable for the Czech Republic when they take on England and Scotland this summer. He could also miss a considerable chunk of Slavia’s European fixtures next season due to the ban.
Kamara, who was subjected to racial abuse, has been given a three-game ban by UEFA for ‘assaulting another player’. The Finnish international will serve this ban while Rangers are in the qualifying process of next season’s UEFA Champions League (and Europa League should Rangers fail to qualify in the first round they play in).
‘Sanction’, ‘Yellow Card’ is Necessary, Says Clarence Seedorf
Dutch legend Clarence Seedorf has called for more action regarding racism in football, beginning with rules that can be easily applied such as players being punished for covering their mouth while speaking to opposition or officials.
Speaking at an online Council of Europe meeting on combatting hate speech, Seedorf spoke about the need for action like this rule to be brought in. He said: “There is a lot of talk but not enough being done. The need is obvious and very urgent.
“From a players’ perspective, I have seen stuff with players speaking and covering their mouth during matches. There were some racist situations in the last weeks or months where the players among themselves had hate speeches. Those things can be very easily attacked by implementing some rules.”
The four-time European champion appeared to be referring to the recent racist incident involving Kudela and Kamara which was punished today.
Seedorf believes action against this type of incident is simple and should be taken quickly. “For me, it should be abandoned to be able to speak like that when you approach an adversary,” he added.
“When we’re talking about sport it has to be completely transparent, so why would I cover my mouth if I need to talk with my adversary? If I want to (cover my mouth to) talk to my coach or a team-mate, all fine, but when I approach the referee or another player in any sport, you are not allowed to cover your mouth, it has to be a sanction, a yellow card.”
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