Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli was spared a heavier ban for his anti-Semitic social media post due to his sincerity and honesty, it has been revealed.
The Italian was handed a one-match suspension by the Football Association after posting an Instagram picture of Nintendo character Mario which included captions such as "jump like a black man and grab coins like a Jew".
The FA revealed that it would have usually recommended up to a three-match ban, but said that Balotelli's submission convinced it to shorten the punishment.
A statement from the commission read: "[The commission was] not influenced by the submissions regarding comparative cases but believed that the other parts of Mr Balotelli's submissions were sincere and entirely honest.
"In his letter, Mr Balotelli also said that he had suffered from racism on a great number of occasions. He added that he is of Ghanaian heritage and that his maternal grandmother was Jewish and had escaped Nazi Germany.
"Mr Ives (from the FA judicial services department) informed us that, whilst we did have flexibility for leniency, under the guidance for this type of offence there would be an expectation of a sporting sanction and the minimum sporting sanction therefore for consideration was a one-match ban."
Balotelli has only made one sub appearance since Liverpool's defeat to Chelsea at the start of November, but is available to face Burnley on Boxing Day.
Barney Corkhill
