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Oliver Jones

Leeds United suffer blow as Aleksandar Mitrovic releases apology amid ban confirmation

Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic seems to have 'confirmed' he will accept a three-match ban in an apology to referee Chris Kavanagh who he pushed in the club's FA Cup loss to Manchester United two weeks ago.

The Serbian international was shown a straight red card after shouting in Kavanagh's face following Willian's sending off late in the second half after an obvious handball on the goal line.

Mitrovic and manager Marco Silva were both then sent off, the latter for dissent, and calls have been made for the striker to be handed an eight or ten match ban for his actions.

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The Football Association did indicate in a previous statement that the three-game ban would be 'clearly insufficient' following the Serbian's shove.

However, in the statement released, Mitrovic makes no mention of a prolonged ban and simply states that he has 'accepted' a three-match ban for the red card.

"I regret my actions that led to me being sent off. I allowed my frustration to get the better of me, and how I reacted was wrong," he wrote in his statement which was posted on the club's website.

"I was trying to get the referee’s attention, but I appreciate that I should not have put my hands on him and I understand why he showed me a red card, my first in-game sending off for Fulham and my first since the 2015-16 season.

"I have accepted the three-match ban for my red card, I have spoken to Chris Kavanagh to apologise, and I have volunteered to accept a club fine. I now want to do what I can to put this incident behind me and get back to helping my teammates on the pitch as soon as possible. In the meantime, I would like to reiterate my regret that this happened.

"I have already said sorry to my teammates, but I would also like to apologise to the Fulham fans, particularly those who travelled to Old Trafford to support us and who did not stop singing all game. I hope to be back soon and repay their faith and support."

Whether or not Mitrovic's ban ends up being extended, he'll at least miss Fulham's matches against Bournemouth, West Ham and Everton - all of which are relegation rivals to Leeds. However, if his ban is extended by just one match, he'll miss out against Leeds as well giving a huge boost to the chances of a Whites victory.

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