Simon Eastwood to serve 999-day ban as Matoukou's 16-year suspension stays unresolved

"Oxford United goalkeeper Simon Eastwood was sent off towards the end of their EFL Trophy game at AFC Wimbledon on 9 January 2024, with the U's eliminated after losing 2-0," begins Martin Brodetsky. "With Oxford spending the next two seasons in the Championship, Eastwood's suspension has come back into play for Tuesday's game against Exeter. Is this the longest gap between a dismissal and subsequent punishment (999 days, or two years, eight months, 25 days)?"

Mykola Kozlenko writes in with the tale of Éric Matoukou, who served a suspension two years after a red card – but that's not even half the story. "On 19 August 2010, Matoukou received a red card playing for Genk in a Europa League qualifier against Porto, and was handed a two-match suspension," Mykola explains. "He served the first game of his ban on 26 August 2010, at which point Genk was eliminated. In 2011 he joined Dnipro in Ukraine. His club played two Europa League qualifiers while he was there, but he was not in the club's Europa League squad. Then, Matoukou was loaned out to Arsenal Kyiv and played on 2 August 2012 in a Europa League qualifier against Mura."

Because he had not served the second game of his suspension, Matoukou's participation meant that Arsenal Kyiv forfeited the match and Uefa restarted his two-match suspension. He served the first match of the ban (again) in the return leg, but still had one to go – and has never completed the two-game sanction. "Dnipro played eight Europa League games after Matoukou returned there, but he never made it into their European squad. He left in 2014 and his subsequent clubs (including Lierse, Inter Turku and Pafos) have not qualified for European football, which means he is still yet to serve the second match of his suspension."

Matoukou is now 43 and last played for amateur Belgian side Sprimont Comblain, so it seems highly unlikely he will ever complete a ban received more than 16 years ago.