Evangelos Marinakis was handed a five-match ban after the Football Association successfully argued that the Nottingham Forest owner had spat towards match officials in a 'flagrant display of disrespectful behaviour'. Marinakis, who denied the charge, was found guilty of improper conduct by an independent regulatory commission over the incident that occurred following Forest’s 1-0 Premier League defeat by Fulham at the City Ground last month. The home side was incensed with referee Josh Smith after he awarded Fulham a penalty on the advice of VAR John Brooks, while also denying two Forest claims for their own spot-kicks.
In publishing the written reasons for the ban, the FA confirmed that the independent commission was 'satisfied' that Marinakis deliberately spat on the floor as the referee walked past him 'in a disrespectful and disgusting display of contempt'. The Greek billionaire argued that he was merely disposing of phlegm, caused by his cigar habit, and the incident was unintentional. However, the commission rejected this defence, calling it 'completely implausible', noting that none of the officials’ statements mentioned coughing and CCTV footage of the tunnel supported their account.
Dominic Adamson KC stated that the action was 'an egregious display of disrespectful behaviour such as this fuels disrespect towards match officials'. Referee Smith said: 'As I walked down the tunnel at the end of the match, Mr Evangelos Marinakis, the owner of Nottingham Forest, was stood on my left-hand side at the end of the tunnel. As I walked past him, he spat on the floor next to my left foot.' Assistant referee James Mainwaring added: 'At the top of the tunnel, on our left-hand side, Mr Marinakis was stood. He did not say anything but as we approached him and was close, he spat on the ground in front of us.'
Adamson KC, who reviewed the evidence with Bradley Pritchard and Mick Kearns, concluded that Marinakis 'deliberately spat in a disrespectful and disgusting display of contempt towards the match officials' and 'it clearly amounts to misconduct' within FA rules. The FA submitted that the spitting was 'entirely unprovoked' and 'no match official should be expected to tolerate such a flagrant display of disrespectful behaviour', a stance the panel agreed with. Marinakis, who is also the Olympiakos owner, missed Forest’s 1-0 win over Crystal Palace on Monday and will be absent for games against West Ham United, Newcastle United, Leicester City, and Arsenal. In a statement released on Friday, Forest said: 'An appeal has immediately been lodged against this decision in respect of both the liability and the sanction.'
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