Jude Bellingham UNDER INVESTIGATION – and could face a ban – for his x-rated gesture in England’s win over Slovakia, UEFA confirm, over ‘violation of decent conduct’ rules

Jude Bellingham will be investigated for a ‘potential breach of the basic rules of decent behaviour’ and faces a possible ban after making an apparently rude gesture following his dramatic equalizer against Slovakia last night.

UEFA has launched a disciplinary investigation into allegations that the England star directed his gesture at the Slovakian bench in Gelsenkirchen.

The player himself was quick to point out on social media that the act was a prank aimed at close friends sitting in the stands. “Everything but respect for how that Slovak team played tonight,” he continued X.

However, UEFA has announced that an inspector will “conduct a disciplinary investigation into a possible breach of the basic rules of decent conduct” by Bellingham “which is alleged to have occurred in the context of this match.”

It remains to be seen whether the investigation will be completed while the tournament is still ongoing. UEFA opened a disciplinary investigation into Serbia following allegations that monkey noises were made during the opening match against England on June 16. Despite the passage of more than two weeks, a conclusion still remains open.

The inspector will conduct his investigation, no doubt using video evidence of the case, before reporting his findings to UEFA’s Scrutiny, Ethics and Disciplinary Body.

They will then decide whether to punish the player, with suspension being one of the sanctions they can receive. The fact that an inspector has been appointed, rather than the player being charged directly, suggests that the issue is not clear-cut.

Bellingham is on a yellow card and would miss the semi-final if booked in the quarter-final against Switzerland should England triumph in Dusseldorf.

A ban is considered highly unlikely, based on recent cases. Should the inspector decide to charge Bellingham, he will have the opportunity to present his case. It could be very difficult to subsequently refute the defense presented by the player on social media.

They have also accused the FA of lack of order or discipline by supporters and the setting off of fireworks.

Later, after Harry Kane scored the winning goal in extra time, Declan Rice became embroiled in a heated exchange with opposition manager Francesco Calzona, who was restrained by Aaron Ramsdale. Rice appeared to call the Italian, who had tried to approach the officials, a ‘bald ****’.

Expert lip reader Jeremy Freeman told Mail Sport that during the skirmish, Rice said angrily: “Shut up you brat, oi, shut up you bald bitch.”

Mail Sport understands that UEFA has no plans to charge Rice any fees.

A suspension for Bellingham would be a major blow to Gareth Southgate and his England team, who scored just four goals in four games at this summer’s European Championship, two of which came from Bellingham.

On Monday morning, German experts criticized Bellingham for his actions and warned that he “could go in a very stupid direction.”

Christoph Kramer, who plays for Borussia Mönchengladbach in the Bundesliga and has faced Bellingham on the pitch several times, said ZDF: ‘He is an excellent player. He just has to be careful not to become cocky at such a young age.

‘What I always find very bad is when you wave your hands away from your own players. He made a few gestures today, but he has done that in recent games as well.”

‘Those theatrical fouls, yellow cards. He stays down, that’s part of football, but…’

Per Mertesacker, formerly of Arsenal, then interrupted him and said: ‘He’s not staying down, he’s rolling around. You don’t have to roll around to provoke anything any more.’

In response, Kramer added, “The season he played, I give him credit for that. But he still has to be careful that things don’t go in a really stupid direction. I hope he will think about that a bit during the summer holidays.’

Bellingham joined his current club Real Madrid from German side Borussia Dortmund last summer, much to the relief of his old teammates.

According to multiple reports Shortly after the bizarre transfer, which could cost as much as £113million, Dortmund’s players were convinced that Bellingham wanted to be the centre of attention and felt he was too hard on them during training and matches.

Despite becoming a fan favourite during his three-year stay, Bellingham is also said to have felt overshadowed by Erling Haaland during the 2021-22 season and responded by waiting at the back after games to applaud the crowd on his own.

He quickly became a leading figure in the dressing room and was given the captain’s armband on several occasions during his final campaign at Dortmund, although his teammates accused him of a lack of leadership and moodiness.

Bellingham, however, is not the first person in football to make such a gesture during a match. Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone apologised after a similar gesture in the 2019 Champions League, when his team beat Juventus.

His ‘cojones’ gesture was imitated in the return leg by Cristiano Ronaldo, who led the Italian club to a 3-2 victory in an incredible comeback.

However, the Portuguese star avoided a ban and was instead fined €20,000 by UEFA for ‘inappropriate behaviour’.

Meanwhile, Slovakia boss Calzona later revealed what prompted his confrontation with England midfielder Rice, explaining that he wanted to complain about their inability to punish time-wasting tactics during extra time.

“Rice was going to go to the officials and leave,” Calzona said. “I had to talk to the officials, but he wouldn’t leave.”

England already have one suspension concern: Marc Guehi is unavailable for the next round match after being shown an early yellow card in Gelsenkirchen.

It was the second time the Crystal Palace defender has scored in this tournament, having already been booked in the 0-0 draw against Slovenia, meaning he will miss the match on 6 July.

With or without Bellingham, England will go into Saturday’s quarter-final against Switzerland as favourites, at least according to the bookmakers.

However, the Three Lions will likely need to produce their best performance of the tournament so far to overcome an impressive team who defeated Italy in the round of 16.