Ban Overturned On Trezeguet
MILAN, Nov 29 (AFP)
Juventus striker David Trezeguet on Thursday had his two-match ban for an alleged headbutt scrapped by Italian football disciplinary chiefs who absolved the player of foul play in last weekend's league match against Lazio.
French international striker Trezeguet was handed the ban Tuesday following the use of TV evidence to decipher an offence unseen by the match referee Pierluigi Collina during Juve's 1-0 defeat, but an appeal by his club on Thursday proved successful. "I am safe but I am convinced that my gesture was not violent," said Trezeguet shortly after he scored two goals in his side's 4-0 Champions League victory over Bayer Leverkusen of Germany. "Justice won the day although I know there will be controversy about this decision. With (Simone) Inzaghi there were a few insults because the game was heated but at the end of the first half I already apologised to him."
The panel, in absolving Trezeguet, said the evidence of assistant referee Pietro Contente had played a crucial role in exonerating the player.
Contente said he had witnessed the entire episode but described the Frenchman's behaviour as 'not relevant in a disciplinary way'. The panel explained that the original basis for the use of TV pictures - that the incident had been unseen by match officials - was now rendered invalid by Contente's eye-witness account. TV pictures appeared to show Trezeguet pushing his head into the face of Lazio striker Inzaghi.
