Werder Bremen's defender Papy Djilobodji has been banned for three matches following his throat-slit gesture made towards Paolo de Blasis of 1FC Mainz 05 during their sides' 1-1 draw at the weekend.
Defender could miss four games in a row
On loan from Chelsea until the end of the season, the defender already has a one-match ban for receiving five yellow cards this season, his latest in the same game. It means the Senegalese international could miss four games in a row during Werder Bremen's fight for survival in the Bundesliga, including games against FC Augsburg and Hamburg SV.
'We maintain that the ruling of a three-match ban is unjustifiable,' Werder's Chief Executive Thomas Eichin told their official website. He then added, 'Above all, we believe that, under the circumstances, the severity and the wrongdoing in this case was less than that of the Deniz Naki case.'
The Naki case in question refers to the last time a player in German football was banned for such a gesture, when the St Pauli forward received a similar ban back in 2009 after making the gesture towards opposition fans.
Bremen await on news for their star man
Werder have announced that they will appeal the decision in the hope that he will be able to take part in their end of season run in.
'Great win today! Very happy to see that we are improving as a team. Let's keep up the good work guys! #Werder'
@Papydjilo15
Djilobodji has so far played ten games for Werder since joining on loan from Chelsea. Signed from FC Nantes just last summer, he has so far only made one appearance for the London club in the League Cup.
However he has proven to be a revelation at a struggling Werder Bremen side, making the Bundesliga Team of the Week on three ocassions.