Hefty suspension for Conçeicão
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Article summary
The Belgian Football Association has banned R. Standard de Liège captain Sérgio Conçeicão for four and a half months following his red card in a cup tie.
Article body
August return
Conçeicão will therefore miss the remaining four rounds of the Belgian championship – with his Standard team leading the First Division from RSC Anderlecht – as well as Standard's Belgian Cup semi-final against KSV Waregem and any final. He will be eligible to resume his career on 11 August. Standard have a right of appeal, but their skipper will not play again this season.
Seeing red
The ban relates to the 31-year-old winger's red card in the first leg of the Waregem tie on 21 March – a 2-1 home defeat for Standard. Conçeicão was red-carded for spitting at an opponent and then exacerbated his crime by pushing his shirt in the face of referee Peter Vervecken with his fist, before leaving the pitch with a strong gesture to the Zulte-Waregem fans. He has been suspended from playing since 27 March.
Big contribution
Capped 56 times by Portugal, the former FC Porto, S.S. Lazio, Parma FC and FC Internazionale Milano player joined Standard at the start of the 2004/05 campaign. He has made 53 league appearances for the club, scoring 17 goals, and in January was named Belgium's Player of the Year for 2005.
