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PSG vs Basaksehir match official Coltescu suspended by UEFA 'for inappropriate behaviour'
The Romanian and assistant referee Octavian Sovre have been banned from officiating any competitive matches until July
Sebastian Coltescu has been suspended by UEFA "for inappropriate behaviour" during the Champions League group-stage contest between Paris Saint-Germain and Istanbul Basaksehir.
The Group H fixture that took place at the start of December was abandoned after 14 minutes, with both sets of players walking off the pitch following Demba Ba's allegation that Coltescu had racially abused Basaksehir assistant coach Pierre Webo.
Coltescu, who was serving as the fourth official at Parc des Princes, has been cleared of racism, but will still have to serve a ban from officiating until the end of the season, along with assistant referee Octavian Sovre.
What's been said?
An official statement from UEFA read: "Following an investigation conducted by a UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector regarding the events that led to the 2020-21 UEFA Champions League match between Paris Saint-Germain and İstanbul Basaksehir FK on 8 December 2020 being abandoned, and the subsequent proceedings opened against the match officials Mr Sebastian Constantin Coltescu and Mr Octavian Sovre, the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body (CEDB) has taken the following decision:
"To suspend Mr Sebastian Constantin Coltescu from carrying out any referee’s function until the end of the 2020-21 season, i.e. until 30 June 2021, for the violation of Article 11(1) of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations (DR) and Article 6(1) of the General Terms and Conditions for Referees officiating at UEFA Matches (GTC), i.e. for inappropriate behaviour during a UEFA match for which he was appointed.
"To order Mr Sebastian Constantin Coltescu to attend an educational programme before 30 June 2021 under the conditions determined by the UEFA refereeing services.
"To reprimand Mr Octavian Sovre for the violation of Article 11(1) DR and Article 6(1) of the General Terms and Conditions for Referees officiating at UEFA Matches, i.e. for inappropriate behaviour during a UEFA match for which he was appointed.
"To order Mr Octavian Sovre to attend an educational programme as soon as possible but before 30 June 2021 under the conditions determined by the UEFA refereeing services.
"With this decision, the CEDB has therefore considered that both match officials violated Articles 11(1) DR and 6(1) GTC (obligation to behave in an appropriate manner), but not Article 14 DR (racism and other discriminatory conduct).
"The CEDB also agreed with the EDI that UEFA officials should be adequately and specifically trained to make better decisions on the choice of language and words to be used in UEFA competitions. In the international context, correct use of language is essential to avoid situations such as those that occurred in the above-mentioned match."
What did Coltescu say to Webo?
Basaksehir striker Ba erupted with fury after Coltescu was heard on camera referring to Webo as "the black one" while questioning the former Cameroon international's conduct on the touchline.
Ba squared up to the Romanian before both sets of players intervened, with the Basaksehir squad subsequently refusing to play on.
PSG also walked off in a display of solidarity against racism, and Coltescu issued a public apology in the aftermath of the postponed game.
"Racism was never my intention," he said. “In such an environment, people sometimes cannot properly express their feelings and can be misunderstood.
“I apologise in the name of the UEFA Champions League.”
Who won the rescheduled match?
The fixture was pushed back by 24 hours to December 9 and the action restarted from where it had been cut short with the scoreline at 0-0.
PSG went on to secure a convincing 5-1 victory, thanks to a Neymar hat-trick and two goals from Kylian Mbappe, sealing a place in the last 16 as Group H winners in the process.
