Matheus Cunha had a ban for scuffling with an Ipswich staff member reduced after the Wolves forward offered to buy the man a new pair of glasses.
An independent commission found that the Brazilian forward had committed a “serious” offence by becoming involved in a post-match altercation after a 2-1 defeat at Molineux last month, but said a prompt personal apology from the player had acted as mitigation.
In written reasons for the decision, published by the Football Association on Tuesday, a witness statement shows Cunha unreservedly apologising for his actions.
“It was never my intention to come into contact with [the Ipswich employee] and I certainly never meant to elbow him,” Cunha said. “I simply wanted to push him away from [teammate] Rayan Aït-Nouri. Then all of a sudden, I remember [he] turned round and had his hands on my shirt, and I shouted ‘stop’ but he kept hold of my shirt.
“[He] is much bigger than me and I was surrounded by a large number of people, mainly ITFC personnel, so I remember feeling quite threatened at the time. So in an effort to get [him] to let go of my shirt, in the heat of the moment I regrettably reached out and grabbed his glasses. I know it was wrong to do this and I take full responsibility for my actions.”
In a related submission Wolves informed the commission that Cunha had offered to pay for a new pair of glasses for the Ipswich employee.
Although the commission said they found Cunha’s version of events to be “implausible”, arguing there had been no sign of provocation from the Ipswich staff member in available video footage, they also concluded that the player’s apology was “sincere”. As a result, a three match ban was reduced to two and a fine of £120,000 cut to £80,000.
The written reasons show the commission rejected a push by Wolves for a one-match ban. “[The commission] did not accept WWFC’s argument that it should take account of the fact that the ITFC security personnel were overly aggressive and contributed to the atmosphere of hostility,” the written reasons state.
“Even if that were the case, which the Commission did not accept, it did not amount to mitigation for [Cunha’s] actions. Taking all of these factors into account, the Commission decided to reduce the suspension by one match [to two matches].”
Cunha missed Monday night’s 3-0 home defeat to Nottingham Forest, and is set to complete his ban when Wolves face Bristol City in the FA Cup on Saturday.
