Zlatan Ibrahimovic has landed himself a four-match ban for branding France a “shit country” during a foul-mouthed rant about a referee.
Ibrahimovic, who plays for French club PSG, will now miss the club’s following four Ligue 1 games, with the league’s disciplinary panel saying that his punishment reflected “the offensive nature and rudeness of his words”.
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The Swedish striker made the offending remarks following PSG’s 3-2 defeat to Girondins Bordeaux on March 15th, following a match in which many believed the referee failed to reward PSG a number of decisions. Following the game, Ibrahimovic was filmed saying: “Fucking wake up. We’re not playing in the amateurs. Wake up! Fucking asshole. I have never seen that in 15 years in my career, such a referee in this shit country. Don’t even deserve PSG to be in this country.”
His comments didn’t sit well with the club’s fans, though it’s likely that his relatively lengthy punishment will be even less warmly received. With PSG only sitting atop the table by one point, Ibrahimovic missing the four out of the seven games remaining in the French league could prove to be costly for the club, as Lyon look to overtake their rivals.
Ibrahimovic later apologised for his comments, saying: “I was not aiming it at the people who were there… I was angry in that moment. Whoever felt offended, or who took it in the wrong, I apologise for them because I’m a man of honour.
He continued: “I think the French people are intelligent enough to understand the situation.”
Along with missing the next four league games for PSG, he will also be absent in the club’s Champions League match against Barcelona, after he was shown a debatable red card following an innocuous tackle during the French outfit’s match against Chelsea in the previous round.
Photo: Getty Images
