Spurs £22m star could miss Man Utd, West Ham and more fixtures as FA ban looms large

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur could be banned for up to 12 games after being charged by the FA over comments made about teammate Son Heung-min.

The 27-year-old appeared on Uruguayan TV in June and was asked by a presenter for a Tottenham Hotspur shirt. He replied: "Sonny's? It could be Sonny's cousin too as they all look the same."

Bentancur later apologised on Instagram for the comment and labelled the interaction a 'very bad joke'. The player has since featured in two of Spurs' Premier League games this season, against Leicester City and Newcastle United, missing the Everton fixture due to a head injury.

The FA has now said that the player has been "charged with an alleged breach of FA rule E3 for misconduct in relation to a media interview".

"It's alleged that the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder acted in an improper manner and/or used abusive and/or insulting words and/or brought into disrepute," said an FA statement.

The FA are regarding the moment from June as an "aggravated breach... as it included a reference, whether express or implied, to nationality and/or race and/or ethnic origin".

The length of a potential ban remain to be seen with Bentancur given until Thursday, September 19 to respond to the charge. FA Laws say that "match-based sanctions of 6-12 games will be recommended to regulatory commissions for almost all acts of discrimination by individual participants".

Bentancur, who joined Spurs for £21.5 million from Juventus in 2022, remains eligible to play against Arsenal in the North London derby this weekend but a lengthy lay-off would see him miss key matches in the top flight this season. After taking on the Gunners, Ange Postecoglou's side face Brentford, Manchester United, Brighton, West Ham and Crystal Palace in their next six league outings.

Speaking about the incident in June, Son said: "I've spoken to Lolo. He made a mistake, he knows this and has apologised.

"Lolo would not mean to ever intentionally say something offensive. We are brothers and nothing has changed at all. We're past this, we're united, and we will be back together in pre-season to fight for our club as one."