The Uruguayan midfielder is in danger of being suspended for 15 matches
Uruguay won 2-0 Ghana on December 2 thanks to a brace from Giorgian de Arrascaeta, but not enough to compete for second place with South Korea. The South American representative has the same four points and zero difference, but is behind because of scoring one goal less than Korea.
After the match, the Uruguayan players surrounded referee Daniel Siebert and his assistant team. At that time, Gimenez chased the referee team to the edge of the line and elbowed the back of the head of a FIFA official. In a later video, the 27-year-old midfielder also cursed the referees and challenged the authorities. "The referees are thieves, these assholes. That's right, record what I say," Gimenez said.
According to Mundo Deportivo, insults at the referee in the video could lead to Gimenez being banned for three games. Meanwhile, attacking a FIFA official would result in him facing a 15-match ban, or an "appropriate" time out, if the incident is reported.
British newspaper Sportmail added, elbowing is listed as assault. But it is not clear whether Gimenez will be banned from playing for 15 matches in the Uruguay shirt, or the suspension will last until the second half of the season with the host club Atletico.
When Luis Suarez was banned for three months for biting the shoulder of central defender Giorgio Chiellini in the match against Italy in the final round of the 2014 World Cup, FIFA issued a penalty banning the Uruguayan striker from playing for the national team and the host club. manager at that time was Barca. In addition, Suarez also has to pay a fine of more than $ 5,000.
According to Sportmail, if Gimenez cannot play at club level, Atletico will have to buy more central defenders in the January 2023 transfer window. The team under Diego Simeone is currently fifth in La Liga with the same 24 points as Bilbao, but behind because of the difference. They finished last in Group B of the Champions League, and did not even have a Europa League kick.
On December 2, the Uruguayan players were displeased when the referees and VAR team did not give a penalty when Edinson Cavani fell in the penalty area in the second minute of compensation. Another controversial situation came in the 58th minute, when Darwin Nunez entered the penalty area and fell during a dispute with Daniel Amartey. Referee Siebert went to the touchline to review the video but did not give Uruguay a penalty.
After the match, Suarez accused FIFA of forcing Uruguay at the 2022 World Cup, and Edinson Cavani punched the screen of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology when going from the stadium to the dressing room.
