The Independent Regulatory Commission has revealed why Thomas Tuchel was given a one-match ban, while Antonio Conte was not, after their brawl during Chelsea’s draw with Tottenham Hotspur.
The two London teams played to a draw (2-2) at Stamford Bridge, while the two coaches had tensions in two situations that escalated at the moment of greeting after the end of the meeting.
The Spurs manager was fined £15,000 (€17,740) but escaped suspension, while the Blues’ manager was fined £35,000 (€41,400) and banned for one match.
In the commission’s report, it is stated that “Tuchel was the one who incited the confrontation between himself and Conte by choosing to grab the latter’s hand and pull him back after he had passed by him”.
It is further said that if the German coach did not pull the Italian, the confrontation and subsequent fight would not have happened.
Shaking hands is the usual occurrence at the end of the match – the report points out – but no one has the obligation to look the other in the eye while doing so.
“Tuchel’s request that Conte look him in the eye until he held his hand and did not allow Conte to continue was a very provocative move. Conte reluctantly withdrew, in the full sense of the word, in the confrontation with Tuchel. Conte reacted aggressively to these actions, but the commission did not consider him to have gone too far given the circumstances.”
“While some aspects of Conte’s behavior could be considered inappropriate, indeed he admitted as much, the commission found Tuchel largely to blame for the incident and unanimously felt that this should be clearly and definitively reflected in the level of sanction decided against them”, says the report