Cremonese player given massive 4-match ban for insulting referee

Cremonese player Alberto Grassi has been given a four-match ban for insulting and pushing the referee during the ill-tempered 4-1 defeat to Como.

The hosts reacted furiously to a soft penalty that was awarded to Como in a game that they needed to win or face relegation from Serie A.

This resulted in a flurry of red cards to Grassi on the pitch, plus Milan Djuric and David Okereke, who were warming up when they accosted the assistant referee.

The Lega Serie A today announced that Grassi was handed a massive four-match ban.

This is because he uttered a blasphemous phrase, which is the worst kind of swearing in the Italian language, approached referee Fabio Maresca in a threatening manner, and lightly pushed the official.

His Cremonese teammate Djuric received a two-match ban for insulting the officials, while Okereke has only a one-game suspension.

There is also a two-match ban for Udinese defender Christian Kabasele, who was sent off during the defeat to Napoli for kicking out at Rasmus Hojlund in an off the ball situation.

The final one-match bans handed out by the Lega Serie A for this season, which carry on to the next, are for Nicolas Valentini (Verona), Sascha Britschgi (Parma), Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Inter), Ylber Ramadani (Lecce) and Jamie Vardy (Cremonese).