Former Atletico Madrid striker Gelson Martins has been handed a six month ban after pushing a referee during a Ligue 1 game.
The Portuguese international joined AS Monaco at the start of the season, after spending the 2018-19 campaign on loan at the club from Diego Simeone’s side.
Despite featuring regularly for Robert Moreno side so far this season, he became involved in a bizarre incident during their 3-1 defeat at Nimes on February 1.
The 24-year old was shown a straight red card for a push on referee Mikael Lesage, after team mate Tiemoue Bakayoko was dismissed, and the French FA confirmed they would be investigating the matter further.
AS Monaco have now confirmed the suspension, with Martins set to miss the rest of the campaign.
The club have stated their condemnation of Martins’ behaviour during the incident, however they have also labelled the length of the ban as ‘excessive’ due to his previous good disciplinary record.
Moreno’s side face a tough test this weekend, as they take on Patrick Vieira’s Nice.