Neymar was given a two-match suspension for covering his mouth during an on-pitch confrontation in Santos' Brazilian league match against Bahia at Vila Belmiro stadium. Added to a separate one-match ban for accumulated yellow cards, the decision means he will miss Santos' next three matches.
The suspension decision
Brazil's sports tribunal said Neymar's actions during an argument with an opponent violated the protocol known as the 'Vinicius Law' or Vinicius Jr. rule. The suspension was handed down on Wednesday, and Neymar and Santos can appeal the ban for covering his mouth.
One of the three matches is Wednesday's league game against Palmeiras, for which Neymar was already banned because of an accumulation of yellow cards. The other two matches of his absence are for covering his mouth, and he is not expected to return to action until late November.
What happened against Bahia
The incident happened in Santos' match against Bahia on Saturday, a Brazilian league game that ended in a 1-1 draw. Neymar was involved in an altercation with Bahia midfielder Rodrigo Nestor after the pair had already clashed during the first half, and before the start of the second half Neymar squared up to him again.
Nestor went straight to the referee after Neymar covered his mouth. The referee admitted he had not seen the incident, was alerted by the video assistant referee and then showed Neymar a direct red card.
Report and hearing details
The referee's report said Neymar, after being sent off, ran towards the away team's substitutes' bench to confront his opponent and had to be restrained by teammates.
Delmiro Campos, the official tasked with investigating the case, said: "Objectively, the gesture of covering the mouth in the context of a confrontation directed at an opponent, with awareness of the illegitimacy of this act, are two things that cannot be called into question"
According to GOAL, citing Marca, the committee discussed a four-match ban before the majority settled on two. According to GOAL, lawyer Marcelo Mendez represented Neymar's side at the hearing. Mendez said: "Not every gesture of covering the mouth is covered by the Vinicius law, and the player put his hand over his mouth instinctively"
Other related detail
According to GOAL, Neymar's lawyers argued that the situation involved no hostility or sharp disagreement, just an exchange of words in an atmosphere of banter and fun.
REUTERS via Flashscore reported that Neymar became the first player in Brazil's top flight to be temporarily removed from the field under a new rule being tested in the league to curb time-wasting by goalkeepers.
