MONACO HANDED TWO-POINT PENALTY

FRENCH Champions Monaco are the latest club to be punished by the French Football League (LNF) by having two points deducted as a result of defender Pablo Contreras being found guilty of holding a false passport.

The Chilean international defender has received a two-month suspension with a further two-months suspended ban. He will appear at a hearing into the matter on February 14th, the same day as Metz goalkeeper Faryd Mondragon.

Earlier this month, Saint Etienne received a stiffer sentence of a seven-point deduction after they fielded two players with false passports. The committee said that Monaco got a lighter sentence because Contreras obtained his passport before he joined the club.

"We sanctioned the lack of vigilance from Monaco, even if their liability was only slight," said the committee chairman, Jean-Pierre Camus.

Monaco officials are angry that they have been punished and are set to appeal against the ruling.

"They have put words into our mouth," said Monaco chairman Jean-Louis Campora. "They never said we made a blunder and they never gave an explanation of the punishment.

"I am angry because we are sanctioned even if we a perfectly clean case. The police confirmed the validity of the passport and gave Contreras a resident permit.

"Why could the club be questioned on that? Even the League gave a membership card and we reacted in December when the problems appeared."