Video: Romanian player gets banned for 16 matches for an ankle-breaking tackle on opponent

Alin Seroni’s horrible challenge left Nicusor Bancu with a fractured ankle.

A centre-back from Romanian football side Viitorul Constanta, Alin Seroni has been issued a ban for 16 matches for his reckless foul on Nicusor Bancu during his side’s Romanian Cup match against Universitatea Craiova on Oct. 29.

Following the tackle, Bancu had suffered a broken ankle, and referee Florin Miron issued Seroni a second yellow card to send him off. Seroni will now be unavailable to return to the field until April with his club, Viitorul yet to announce their stance on the incident.

Seroni ’s horrific tackle that led to his 16-match ban:

He was the second player to face the 16-match ban after the Romanian FA imposed a similar ban on FCM Targu Mures midfielder Gabriel Muresan after he had violently knocked out Steaua Buchrast striker Raul Rusescu with an elbow. Surprisingly, Muresan was not sent off after the incident.

Rusescu was very close to losing his eye-sight, but his condition has improved since then, and will be back in action next year.

When asked about the ban, Targu Mures’s general director Daniel Stanciu was quoted by the Guardian saying, “It’s a drastic decision, I’ve never seen anything like this. How a player can be suspended for 16 matches since he wasn’t even sent off?”

Gabriel Muresan’s foul on Rusescu: