Aston Villa forward Jhon Duran has been fined £15,000 ($18,300) by the Football Association (FA) after kicking a water bottle during his side’s Premier League game against Newcastle United on Boxing Day.
Duran was sent off during the match for what referee Anthony Taylor adjudged to be a stamp on Newcastle defender Fabian Schar and the striker was furious with the decision, kicking a water bottle away as he departed the pitch.
Villa manager Unai Emery was also unimpressed by the decision and said that a ban would be “hard to accept.”
The 21-year-old was handed a three-match suspension for the red card that was unsuccessfully appealed by Villa and was then charged by the FA for the water bottle incident. However, he has avoided a further ban after an independent Regulatory Commission stopped short of a sporting sanction.
The commission said that the fact that “the bottle did not strike anybody appeared to be attributable to luck rather than judgement,” but took Duran’s frustration into consideration and noted that it could have stemmed from the stamping incident being unintentional.
The Colombian international also apologised for the incident and admitted that he had acted in an improper manner.
The commission determined that a sporting sanction would be “too severe” and opted instead to impose the fine.
Duran has had a productive season for Villa, scoring 12 goals in 26 games, frequently making impactful appearances off the bench.
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(Stu Forster/Getty Images)
