FIFA have told the Russian Football Union they have until next Tuesday to provide information about the alleged racist abuse of ex-Arsenal star Emmanuel Frimpong.
Frimpong, who plays for Russian side Ufa, was sent off after raising his middle finger at Spartak Moscow fans during a match last Friday. On Twitter, the Ghana international said he reacted due to monkey chants from Spartak supporters. The RFU dismissed the claims and handed the 23-year-old a two-match ban, a decision which Frimpong described as "joke". "Been banned for two games," he said.
"Acceptable on my part for the gesture, no problems with that. But for the Russian FA to say they didn't hear or see any evidence of racism is beyond a joke." But ahead of the qualifying draw for the 2018 World Cup, which is taking place in the Russian city of St Petersburg, FIFA's head of sustainability Federico Addiechi confirmed the organisation has contacted the RFU about the incident. "Immediately after we knew about the case we contacted the Russian FA - that was on July 21," he said. "We've given them seven days to provide information about the case because we thought it was a prominent case that included possible allegations of discrimination, and because it was happening in the country which is hosting the World Cup."