It has now been confirmed that an African star has had his three-match ban extended to five games in the Premier League.
Ghana international Mohammed Kudus will spend a further two games on the sidelines after the English Football Association added charges of violent conduct to his initial three-match ban.
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On 19 October, the West Ham United attacker was shown a straight red card during a 4-1 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur for putting his hands on two of his opponents' faces, Micky van de Ven and Pape Matar Sarr.
The incident was checked by VAR, and Kudus was found guilty of violent conduct, resulting in an automatic three-match ban.
As such, the former Ajax Amsterdam winger missed games against Manchester United and Nottingham Forest, while he is also set to miss the side's next game before the international break against Everton.
Kudus' actions have since been further reviewed by an independent Regulatory Commission, which has now extended his suspension by two games, meaning that the African footballer also will not feature in Premier League games against Newcastle United and Arsenal later this month.
According to the written reasons published by the independent Regulatory Commission, Kudus expressed his embarrassment about the incident and accepted the charge, as per Sky Sports.
It read: "MK [Mohamed Kudus] began his letter by apologising, stating that he was deeply embarrassed by his behaviour in the 20 seconds following his foul on Micky van de Ven.
"He accepted that he had lost his cool and said that his behaviour was out of character.
"He stated that he could not recall the events clearly, but having viewed the footage, he felt that MvdV [Micky van de Ven] had exaggerated the incident as there was minimal contact from him...He accepted that he should not have pushed PS [Pape Sarr] in the face and that his action merited a red card. However, he did not injure anyone or use excessive force.
"MK [Mohamed Kudus] stated that his preparation for the match had been mentally and physically challenging because he had travelled for a midweek international fixture and had received various negative comments on social media. He referred to his work within the community and in his home country of Ghana, stressing how he tried to be a role model."
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By Lukhanyo Mtuta
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