AMSTERDAM – Schalke have quickly announced their intention to appeal the four-match ban handed down to Jermaine Jones by the German federation on Wednesday.
During a routine hearing over his red card at Stuttgart this past weekend, the DfB explained it was hitting the US midfielder with such a stiff penalty because he has already served multiple suspensions. Most notably, Jones served an eight-game ban early in the year after stamping the injured foot of then-Borussia Mönchengladbach winger Marco Reus.
All toled, this is the 14th suspension handed to the 31-year-old Frankfurt native since he joined Schalke in 2007, with five of them coming after ejections and another five issued for accrued bookings. Ironically, the straight red shown to the US national teamer at Stuttgart was the first of his pro career.
The Miners will now make an oral defense of Jones at a new hearing yet to be scheduled. With or without him, the fifth-place hosts will try to snap a four-game Bundesliga win drought against Freiburg on Saturday.
