Calvin Stengs received a red card last Sunday for a stroke in the direction of Amadou Diawara (RSC Anderlecht).
After an aborted attack by Anderlecht, Stengs came into a duel with Diawara in the 63rd minute, who held him up while the ball was not playable, to keep Stengs from a possible counter. The Dutch midfielder reacted with a slamming, swinging movement, half hitting Diawara’s body.
In the motivation for the decision, the Committee notes that Stengs delivered a clear voluntary and unnatural blow with his right fist. According to the Committee, the fact that Stengs would have made the move to get rid of Diawara was certainly not correct.
Diawara was able to escape the violence of the movement, but according to the Committee, Stengs could have endangered his physical integrity with the “violent gesture”.
At Antwerp they could live with the red card, but not with the 3 (eventually 4) match days suspension. According to Stengs and his counselor, it was simply an attempt to free himself. With delayed images they also showed how Diawara Stengs had first hit 2 times on the throat / chin, something that ref Erik Lambrechts admitted at the hearing.
Antwerp and Stengs can still appeal the decision. In that case, the case will come before the Disciplinary Council for Professional Football on Friday.
