EPL News: Tom Huddlestone escapes further punishment while Yossi Benayoun’s out for several months
Tottenham Hotspur player Tom Huddlestone has managed to escape any further punishment from UEFA after his ugly elbow incident in the Champions League match against FC Twente.
Marc Janko, the striker from Twente, had said that Huddlestone had intentionally slammed his elbow into his face during the match. The front man was left flat on the ground and had a bleeding nose. However, UEFA, after studying
the video footage of the incident said that Huddlestone had not committed any offence and he has nothing to be answerable for. That means the central midfielder would be available for Spurs’ match against Inter Milan in UEFA Champions’ League.
Had the 23 year old been charged by UEFA, he would have received a ban of a minimum of 2 matches. That would have meant that he would have missed the two matches against defending European champions Inter Milan.
Tottenham are already shorthanded as their most influential midfielder, Rafael Van der Vaart, was sent off in the match against FC Twente. If Huddlestone was also to be sidelined, it would have been a big problem for manager
Harry Redknapp.
The incident in question took place when Huddlestone actually pulled back Janko, and a free kick was awarded. Tottenham ended up winning the match 4-1; Redknapp later admitted that he had seen the footage and there was some
visible contact from Huddlestone’s elbow. But he said that the decision lies with the authorities and refrained from commenting any further on the matter. He added that Tom may have made contact with Janko but there is no doubt that there was any menace intended.
Redknapp said, "It's not like Tom - he's not at all an aggressive player, he's a fantastic footballer and a great guy.
"It looked like he caught him with an elbow. Whether he meant to do it, I'm not so sure."
Janko had said, "If you look at the TV pictures, you will see he clearly hit me on purpose. He smashed his arm into my face."
Meanwhile talking about another London club, Chelsea midfielder Yossi Benayoun has been sidelined for few months following an achilles tendon injury.
Benayoun had been out of action due to a calf injury, but still decided to go back to Israel to take part in Euro 2012 qualifiers against Croatia and Greece.
However scans taken at the training camp revealed that there was a tear in his achilles tendon. Benayoun was quite disappointed by the injury and said that for now he is on extensive rest, and only further scans would reveal
the extent of the injury and what needs to be done.
The Israeli midfielder joined Chelsea in the summer from Liverpool and has been impressive for the champions so far. He also scored a hat trick for Israel in a Euro 2012 qualifier against Malta. He was also part of the team
in the match against Georgia that ended in a goalless draw. He was last seen in action on the 22nd of September in a Carling Cup tie.
Benayoun came to English football 5 years ago and joined West ham United. Since then it was clear that he was not going to stay long at the London club. The winger impressed one and all with his trickery and quick feet, and
was soon snapped up by Liverpool but due to lack of success at Anfield he decided to part ways and joined the conquering Chelsea in search of silverware. The injury comes as a setback for the right footer who was settling in well at Stamford Bridge.
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