ATLÉTICO | FILIPE LUIS
Atlético Madrid to appeal Filipe Luis three-match suspension
In a statement, the club said: "The action of our footballer has not been measured with the same yardstick in comparison to other similar actions".
Atlético Madrid have announced that they are to lodge an appeal against the three-match suspension handed to defender Filipe Luis for his dismissal in Los Rojiblancos' weekend La Liga defeat to Barcelona.
The Brazilian was shown a straight red in the closing stages of the first half at the Camp Nou on Saturday, following a high challenge on Barça forward Lionel Messi.
In a statement published on their club website on Wednesday, Atlético branded the ban meted out by the RFEF (Spanish Football Federation) Competition Committee as "out of proportion".
Atlético added that they believe the 30-year-old has been dealt with more severely than players who have committed similar offences in the past.
"It cannot be that an identical action which is written in the same way in the minutes of the match can be punished with one game in one case, and in ours it [the Competition Committee] punishes Filipe with three matches," the club said.
Atlético de Madrid has decided to appeal the three-game ban imposed on Filipe Luis for his sending off at Barcelona’s match on Saturday, the 30th of January. The club considers the number of banned matches imposed on the Brazilian winger out of proportion and shall so state it in the appeal presented to contest it. José Luis Pérez Caminero believes that the action of our footballer has not been measured with the same yardstick in comparison to other similar actions: "Similar actions should be judged in the same way and have the same punishment. It cannot be that an identical action which is written in the same way in the minutes of the match can be punished with one game in one case and in ours it punishes Filipe with three matches."
Our Sporting Director wanted to emphasize that "Filipe Luis is a player with a spotless track record, the opposite of a violent player, a major athlete. He goes to battle for a ball, touches the ball and later hits without being able to avoid the rival. Anyone who has played football knows that there is no bad intention in his action and it cannot be judged otherwise. Three games should be used to punish other types of actions, not this one."