Ban for Dortmund's Lewandowski reduced

Ban reduction allows Lewandowski to play this weekend

01-Mar-2013 9:45:00 PM

The 24-year-old striker has seen his three-game suspension reduced to two matches by the DFB, which means the Poland international is likely to feature against Hannover on Saturday

Borussia Dortmund striker Robert Lewandowski will play this weekend having had his ban reduced from three games to two by the German Football Association (DFB).

The 24-year-old was sent off in last month's shock 4-1 home defeat to Hamburg, but he will now be available for Saturday's home game with Hannover. He missed the recent games against Borussia Monchengladbach and Eintracht Frankfurt.

After a three-hour long hearing, Goetz Elles, chairman of the Federal Court, revealed the reasoning behind Lewandowski's ban being cut.

"It was not a kick [out]. A suspension for two games seems reasonable to me," he told gathered media.

Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke was relieved about the decision to reduce his star striker's ban.

"This was a fair trial, we are very grateful. We are pleased that Robert can play on Saturday," he said.

Poland's current Footballer of the Year was shown a straight red card for a rash challenge on Hamburg midfielder Per Skjelbred on February 9.

Lewandowski is currently second in the Bundesliga scoring charts with 14 goals, and has been strongly linked with a move to Bayern Munich this summer, though Manchester United are also reportedly interested.