Atletico Madrid boss Simeone blasts “unfair” Kieran Trippier ban

Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone has hit out at the ruling that bans full-back Kieran Trippier for first-team selection for 10 weeks following a breach of betting rules.

An FA panel found the right-back guilty on four of seven counts of having broken betting rules in July 2019, when he joined Los Rojiblancos from Tottenham.

The FA’s decision will rule Trippier out of 13 club matches – including the first leg of their Champions League tie against Chelsea – as it would be a global ban from the ban, expiring on 28 February.

The England international would be due to set out the Copa del Rey clash at Cornella alongside the league clashes against Getafe, Alavés, Athletic, Sevilla, Eibar, Valencia, Cádiz, Celta, Granada, Leante and Villarreal.

Perhaps significantly, the ban also means that Trippier will not be unavailable for selection for any international matches – an aspect of the ban that has not passed Simeone by.

epa07793631 Atletico de Madrid’s defender Kieran Trippier in action during the Spanish LaLiga match between CD Leganes and Atletico Madrid at Butarque stadium in Madrid, Spain, 25 August 2019. EPA-EFE/KIKO HUESCA

Simeone told his pre-match press conference ahead of the clash with Getafe, in quotes carried by Reuters: “We think it’s unfair and we hope it can be revised because of the damage done to Atletico.

“Atletico obviously have absolutely nothing to do with this situation so we hope it can be re-assessed in some way, because while the FA benefits from this, Atletico is harmed by it and has nothing to do with it.

“But the circumstances are what they are and we’ll have to live with it.”

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