Hertha Berlin's Georgian defender Levan Kobiashvili was on Monday given a seven-and-a-half-month suspension for striking a referee, the longest suspension in the history of German football. The 34-year-old, who has made 336 Bundesliga appearances, assaulted referee Wolfgang Stark during Hertha's 2-2 draw with Fortuna Duesseldorf in a relegation play-off match on May 15, which condemned Hertha to a 4-3 aggregate defeat. "I will accept this judgement in order to continue to be able to play football," he said. "My family and I have suffered a lot recently. I'm therefore happy that the procedure is over." The disciplinary committee of the German Football Federation (DFB) had called for a year-long ban but the organisation's sports tribunal instead decided to suspend him until December 31, 2012 -- seven and a half months after the offence occurred. The referee, who received a blow to the back of the head and sustained bruising to his neck, had filed a complaint against Kobiashvili. The heated game between Hertha and Fortuna Duesseldorf was suspended for around 20 minutes by Stark after Fortuna fans stormed onto the pitch seconds before the final whistle had been due to sound. Flares had been thrown onto the pitch after Fortuna's second goal, while the referee showed nine yellow cards during the encounter.
GMT 18:45 2018 Wednesday ,10 January
Chinese FA warns clubs over Aubameyang 'bidding war'GMT 19:28 2018 Tuesday ,09 January
Neymar, PSG run riot in French CupGMT 15:08 2018 Sunday ,07 January
Bayern's Heynckes rules out Vidal Chelsea moveGMT 14:59 2018 Sunday ,07 January
Napoli cement top spot as Lazio's Immobile hits fourGMT 16:04 2018 Tuesday ,02 January
Schedulers are against us, Arsenal manager Wenger complainsGMT 15:54 2018 Tuesday ,02 January
Manchester United lift Mourinho, Liverpool leave it lateGMT 19:04 2017 Sunday ,31 December
Lukaku adds to Mourinho's woes as United lose groundGMT 18:58 2017 Sunday ,31 December
Inter, Roma held as Benevento finally win
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©
Send your comments
Your comment as a visitor