Tottenham's Rodrigo Bentancur charged over Son Heung-min comments

Uruguay international accused of making homophobic slur during clash with Arsenal

Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur has been charged with making a homophobic slur during a clash with Arsenal, the Football Association has announced.

The incident is alleged to have taken place during the Premier League match between the two sides on 15 January. Bentancur has until 26 January to respond to the charge. The FA said in a statement: "Rodrigo Bentancur has been charged with a breach of FA Rule E3. "It is alleged that the Tottenham Hotspur FC midfielder used abusive and/or insulting words towards an Arsenal FC player during the Premier League fixture on Sunday 15 January 2023. "It is further alleged that the words constitute an 'Aggravated Breach', which is defined in FA Rule E3.2, as 'a breach of Rule E3 that refers to any of the following characteristics: ethnic origin, colour, race, nationality, religion or belief, sexual orientation, gender or gender reassignment, age, disability or any other similar personal characteristic'." If found guilty, Bentancur could face a ban of up to six matches. The charge comes after Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said he had heard Bentancur make a homophobic slur towards Son Heung-min. Arteta said after the match: "I heard something that I cannot say. It was unacceptable. I will not tolerate it. I reported it to the officials." Tottenham have said they will investigate the incident. In a statement, the club said: "We are aware of the FA charges against Rodrigo Bentancur and take any allegations of this nature extremely seriously. "We shall be asking for observations from the player concerned and will take the appropriate steps once the facts have been established." Bentancur has been a key player for Tottenham since joining the club from Juventus in January 2022. The 25-year-old has made 29 appearances for Spurs this season, scoring six goals.