Borussia Mönchengladbach forward Marcus Thuram is potentially facing a lengthy ban after being sent off for spitting in the face of Hoffenheim's Stefan Posch.
Thuram, the son of French World Cup winner, Lilian, was shown a straight red card for the incident, which took place 11 minutes before full-time in Saturday's Bundesliga game. Referee Frank Willenborg had initially missed it but, after being advised to review footage on a pitch-side monitor, immediately sent the 23-year-old off.
Gladbach had taken the lead through a 34th minute penalty from Lars Stindl, and had conceded an equaliser to Andrei Kramaric shortly before Thuram's dismissal. Hoffenheim were able to take maximum advantage of their extra man, scoring a winner through Ryan Sessegnon with four minutes left to play.
The striker's actions have been widely criticised after footage was shared across social media, with many pointing out that they are particularly inappropriate given accelerating Covid-19 infection rates across the continent. Some have called for him to be given a lengthy ban as punishment.
The defeat to Hoffenheim means Gladbach, who will face Manchester City in the last-16 of the Champions League, are winless in the Bundesliga since the end of November. Having drawn three consecutive draws prior to Saturday's loss, they now sit in eighth in the table.
Thuram has since apologised for his actions on his social media.
"Today something took place that is not in my character and must never happen.
"I reacted to an opponent in a wrong way and something occurred accidentally and not intentionally.
https://twitter.com/MarcusThuram/status/1340389272172544000?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1340389272172544000%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.skysports.com%2Ffootball%2Fnews%2F11904%2F12168201%2Fmarcus-thuram-borussia-monchengladbach-forward-apologises-for-spitting-at-opponent
"I apologize to everyone, to Stefan Posch, to my opponents, to my teammates, to my family and to all those who saw my reaction.
"Of course, I accept all the consequences of my gesture."
The striker's actions have been widely criticised after footage was shared across social media, with many pointing out that they are particularly inappropriate given accelerating Covid-19 infection rates across the continent. Some have called for him to be given a lengthy ban as punishment.
