Cardiff’s Krystian Bielik could face a long suspension after a surprising clash with a young fan that stopped the game.
A surprising incident involving Cardiff City defender Krystian Bielik and a young Portsmouth fan has caught a lot of attention on social media.
On Saturday afternoon, Cardiff continued their tough run in the Championship, losing 2-0 to Portsmouth. This was their fifth game this season without a win.
The frustration from their second loss might have gotten to Bielik. During the match, he got into a confrontation with a supporter, which stopped the game and could lead to a long ban for the Polish player.
The incident happened in the 72nd minute, with Cardiff down 2-0. Video shows Bielik, who has played 11 times for Poland, moving towards the boy, likely trying to get the ball. The fan threw the ball past Bielik in a playful but cheeky way.
This seemed to upset Bielik, and it looked like he grabbed the fan’s neck. The young supporter then pushed Bielik away and seemed to slap him, while other fans nearby stood up to defend the boy. The fan was also seen making gestures towards Bielik after the incident.
The referees paused the game for three minutes, but no cards were shown to Bielik for what happened. This upset Portsmouth fans even more since Bielik had already been booked earlier in the match, and many felt he should have received a second yellow card.
Now, the FA is likely to review the situation. Bielik could face a long ban and a big fine.
He might want to think about similar past cases, like Patrice Evra’s clash with a fan while playing for Marseille, which led to a €10,000 fine and a seven-month ban from UEFA matches. Or Eric Cantona’s famous kung-fu kick at a Crystal Palace fan when he played for Manchester United, which earned him an eight-month global ban and a £20,000 fine.
These examples give an idea of the possible consequences Bielik could face after this incident with the young Portsmouth supporter.