Online Reporter
PSG boss Luis Enrique has broken his silence after slapping Joao Pedro after Chelsea’s Club World Cup triumph.
A mass brawl broke out following the 3-0 win, which also included clashes between goalscorers Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro, and PSG’s Fabian Ruiz.
Tempers flared and reached boiling point at the final whistle, with players pushing and shoving. Both managers got involved after Achraf Hakimi, Andrey Santos and Christopher Nkunku were caught up in the melee.
Pedro confronted boss Enrique who reacted furiously, appearing to slap the Brazilian.
PSG keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma followed up with a push and Pedro fell to the ground. Enrique— who could face a huge ban from coaching —has since claimed he was trying to defuse the situation, with his opposite number Enzo Maresca actually ushering his players away.
The PSG boss explained his actions, saying: “At the end of the game there is a situation that I believe is totally avoidable by everyone.
“My goal and intention, as always, is to try to separate the players so that there are no more problems. Avoidable situation.
“There is a lot of tension, a lot, a lot of pressure and from there, there is a series of pushes by many people that I think we should all avoid and that should not happen again.
“But I repeat, my intention as always, to avoid any situation that goes further.”
Fifa is now poised to open a formal disciplinary probe into Luis Enrique’s behaviour.
But world chiefs are UNABLE to impose a specific match sanction because PSG and Luis Enrique will not play any games under their jurisdiction until the Champions League winners represent Europe in the InterContinental Cup in December.
And that leaves a TIME penalty – a period in which the Catalan would be prevented from doing ANY training ground or match day work – as the most likely punishment if Luis Enrique is charged with misconduct.
The incident came after PSG midfielder Joao Neves lost his cool and pulled Marc Cucurella’s hair, resulting in a red card in the 85th minute.
The likely punishment for Luis Enrique was predicted by senior Spanish referee Eduardo Gonzalez, who said: “Of course, you can be sanctioned.
“There’s a difference, the red and yellow cards in the tournament will expire. But FIFA can sanction him with time.
“So, if Luis Enrique is given a one-month ban, he would miss any games in that month. What’s more, he wouldn’t even be able to train the team.”
Fifa have yet to confirm whether disciplinary procedures have been opened against Luis Enrique or anybody else involved.
Pedro has now spoken out about his role in the incident. He said: “I went to protect Andrey. I saw their players were crowding Andrey. Like a good Brazilian, I went to protect my friend.
“A lot of people were arriving and in that mess, I ended up getting shoved. It’s part of it.
“I don’t need to say anything more about them because it’s normal. Everyone wants to win the game and, in the end, I think they lost their heads.
“But this is football, this has happened and now we need to enjoy it because we won the tournament, that’s it. I don’t want to talk too much about them because you know how it works. Football is this.”— Sun
