Meireles 'spitting' ban reduced on appeal
Reuters - Friday 28 December 2012, 07:48
Fenerbahce midfielder Raul Meireles' 11-match ban for allegedly spitting at the referee has been reduced to four matches by the Turkish Football Federation (TFF).
The 29-year-old Portuguese international was accused of the spitting offence following his red card in an Istanbul derby against Galatasaray on December 16 but Meireles denied the accusations and appealed against the sanctions.
In a statement on the TFF website, the authority's disciplinary committee ruled Meireles did not deliberately spit at the official and cut his ban to four matches and imposed a fine of 20,000 Turkish lira ($11,200) for abusing the referee.
Meireles has previously played for Liverpool and Chelsea in the English Premier League and joined Fenerbahce from the European champions in September.