Barcelona forward Robert Lewandowski will be available for Saturday’s Spanish league game against city rivals Espanyol after a court temporarily overturned his three-match ban.
A dispute court in Madrid said on Friday that Lewandowski should be allowed to continue playing until Spain’s administrative court for sport makes a final decision on an appeal Barcelona has filed against their player’s suspension.
“To be able to have him is great news, but to know it the day before the game when you trained for a game without him is not the best timing for us,” Barcelona coach Xavi Hernández said.
The Polish striker could still be suspended if the Administrative Court for Sport rules against Barcelona’s appeal. But for now he is available to play against Espanyol at Camp Nou in Barcelona’s first game in seven weeks due to the World Cup break.
Lewandowski received a one-match ban when he was sent off with a second yellow card during Barcelona’s 2-1 comeback win at Osasuna on 8 November. The Spanish Football Federation’s competition committee later added two more matches to his suspension for what it called the player’s “show of disrespect” towards the referee after his sending off. Referee Gil Manzano wrote in his match report that Lewandowski pointed twice to his nose before pointing his thumb at the referee in a gesture Manzano interpreted as disrespectful.
Barcelona appealed the decision to the Administrative Court for Sport, but the court refused to temporarily lift the ban until it considered the appeal. Barcelona then sought help from the Disputes Tribunal, which agreed that Lewandowski should play until a final decision was made.
Lewandowski leads the Spanish league with 13 goals this season and plays a major role in Barcelona’s leadership.
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