Luis Enrique coy on Javier Mascherano ban

Barcelona boss Luis Enrique has vowed to 'respect' whatever punishment is handed to Javier Mascherano following the Argentine's red card against Eibar at the weekend.

Mascherano was sent off in the 83rd minute of the La Liga contest, with the referee's report claiming that the central defender had insulted the linesman's mother in a four-letter exclamation.

Barcelona confirmed on Monday that they were appealing the decision, but Enrique has insisted that he will accept whatever outcome is decided by the powers that be.

"It's not a question of what I think [about the incident]. The sanction will be what it is, let them decide. I'll limit myself to respecting the punishment. There's no getting around it," Sport quotes Enrique as saying.

"There has been an improvement in the behaviour of the team. I don't see anything unusual beyond the typical protests."

If the card is upheld, Mascherano could miss Barcelona's next four league matches, including El Clasico away to Real Madrid at the end of November.