(Reuters) – Cristiano Ronaldo, who left Premier League side Manchester United by mutual agreement on Tuesday, has been suspended for two matches by an independent regulatory panel for smashing a teenage fan’s phone after a defeat at Everton last season.
Video footage appeared to show Ronaldo angrily slapping the phone out of the boy’s hand as he walked down the tunnel after United’s 1-0 defeat at Goodison Park in April.
The boy’s mother said he had been left with a bruised hand and his phone screen had been smashed. Ronaldo was cautioned by the police in August and charged with improper conduct by England’s Football Association (FA) in September.
Ronaldo, who had apologised on social media, was warned as to his future conduct and also fined 50,000 pounds ($59,875).
“The forward admitted that his conduct after the final whistle of the Premier League game between United and Everton was improper,” the FA said in a statement on Wednesday.
“An independent Regulatory Commission found that his conduct was both improper and violent during a subsequent hearing, and imposed these sanctions.”
The ban means Ronaldo will miss two games if he joins another Premier League club.
The Portugal captain is in Qatar for the World Cup where his side starts its campaign against Ghana on Thursday.
Ronaldo’s exit from United followed an explosive interview with TalkTV in which he said he did not respect manager Erik ten Hag and felt betrayed by the club.
($1 = 0.8351 pounds)
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
