Former Tottenham player now coaching in Korea hit with five-match ban for racist gesture

Mauricio Taricco, assistant coach for South Korean top-flight club Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, has been suspended for five matches by the K-League’s disciplinary committee after making a racist gesture during a match on 8 November.

The former Tottenham Hotspur player was sent off following an argument with the referee over a penalty appeal against Daejeon Hana Citizen.

The 52-year-old then reportedly shouted "racista" – the Spanish word for racist – at the official, before making a slanted-eye gesture, the K-League confirmed.

Taricco claimed his gesture was to indicate the referee had not directly observed a handball.

However, the K-League rejected this, stating: "The disciplinary committee stated that 'the evaluation of a specific act should be based on the universal meaning of the act as expressed, rather than the perpetrator's stated intentions.'"

It concluded his actions "were identical to the widely known "slant-eye" derogatory gesture against Asians and sufficiently inflicted feelings of racial insult on the recipient."

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Taricco was also fined 20 million won, approximately £12,000.

Taricco, who was a full back in his playing days, started in his homeland of Argentina with Argentinos Juniors before moving to England for the first time to join Ipswich Town in 1994.

He then joined Tottenham in 1998 and spent six years at the north London club.

The Argentine had a brief spell at West Ham before finishing his playing career at Brighton, where he also took a role as an assistant coach.

Taricco has since held several assistant coaching positions at top European clubs including Sunderland, AEK Athens and Real Betis, where he worked alongside his former Tottenham teammate and close friend, Gus Poyet.

Taricco joined Jeonbuk last year following coaching roles with Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua, Bordeaux and the Greece national team.

He is now set for a spell away from the touchline following confirmation of his ban on Wednesday.