Any hopes Napoli had of catching up with Serie A leaders Juventus and beating them to the Scudetto have been severely dented, as the Italian FA have slapped star striker Gonzalo Higuain with a four-match ban.
The Argentine striker, who was also slapped with a €20,000 fine, received this punishment after being involved in a heated confrontation with the referee last weekend.
The former Real Madrid man was sent off in the 3-1 loss to Udinese, a decision which sparked anger from the 28-year-old, as he was involved in a verbal confrontation with the referee, allegedly even shoving the match official before team-mates dragged him off the pitch.
This means that the league’s top-scorer will have to sit out important clashes with Inter Milan on April 16 and Roma on April 25.
Napoli striker @G_Higuain handed a four match ban. Will miss Roma and Inter games. pic.twitter.com/7uWUy3iv49
— Onefootball (@Onefootball) April 4, 2016
The ban to the 30-goal striker may end what little chances Partenopei held in overcoming the reigning Italian champions, as Maurizio Sarri’s boys currently occupy second spot in the standings.
Napoli trail the Old Lady by six points heading into round 32, as only seven games remain for Maurizio Sarri’s crew to catch up with Allegri’s table-toppers.
Fortunately for Napoli, the Italian giants have fared well when playing without their Argentine star, as the are yet to lose a game that Higuain missed since 2013.
7 - #Napoli haven't lost any of the 7 Serie A games in which #Higuain has not played (W5, D2 since 2013/14). Ban.
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo) April 5, 2016
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