Union Berlin boss Nenad Bjelica slapped with THREE-MATCH ban after shoving Leroy Sane in the face in ‘wild’ night’

UNION BERLIN boss Nenad Bjelica has been hit with a three-game ban for shoving Bayern Munich star Leroy Sane.

The incident occurred in last night’s heated Bundesliga clash.

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Nenad Bjelica has been banned for three games after clashing with Leroy Sane[/caption]

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The incident came during Union’s 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich[/caption]

Bjelica lost his cool as Union trailed champions Bayern 1-0 with 15 minutes left to play.

Sane had attempted to prise the ball from his grasp after it went off the field of play.

And Bjelica responded by thrusting his hand into Sane’s face before shoving the ex-Manchester City star away.

The clash sparked a touchline ruckus as Bjelica was shown a straight red card.

Afterwards, he claimed Sane “came and provoked me”, while also admitting “what I did shouldn’t be tolerated. I understand the red card.”

And on Thursday, a German sports tribunal slapped Bjelica with a three-game suspension while also issuing him with a £20,000 fine for “unsportsmanlike conduct.”

Both Bjelica and Union Berlin accepted the punishment.

A statement from the club confirmed: “Nenad Bjelica and 1. FC Union Berlin have agreed to the judgment, which means it is legally binding.”

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Sane broke his silence on the incident last night, saying: “I actually just want to get the ball back quickly to start the next attack.

“And then it got a bit wild and he grabbed me in the face.”

Boss Thomas Tuchel added: ‘It’s not good. It’s hard to defend him. But I don’t want to say anything about it. I don’t need to add fuel to the fire.”

Bjelica has refused to apologise to Sane, saying last night: “I’m in my zone and want to give him the ball. He pushed me. Then of course I reacted.

“[Apologise?] Only to my team. It’s not tolerating it. Not with Sane. He comes towards me to provoke me.

“Of course I don’t react the way I should as a coach. There’s nothing to add.”

Former Dinamo Zagreb and Trabzonspor boss Bjelica has only been with Union Berlin since late November, replacing fan favourite Urs Fischer who led the club from the second division to the Champions League.

He has won just two of his seven matches at the helm.

And Union find themselves 15th in the Bundesliga, just three points above the drop zone.

Bjelica will now miss away games at RB Leipzig and Mainz, as well as a crunch home clash against relegation rivals Darmstadt.

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