Jara ban reduced on appeal by one match

Chile defender Gonzalo Jara will be available for his side’s first 2018 World Cup qualifier after having his three-game ban reduced.

CONMEBOL sanctioned Jara for his role in the dismissal of Uruguay forward Edinson Cavani in the Copa America quarter-finals, although the suspension has been reduced to two matches on appeal.

Cavani received a second yellow card in Santiago after reacting to Jara poking the Uruguayan in the backside.

Jara will still miss the remainder of the 2015 Copa on home soil, but with a semi-final and either a final or a third-place play-off to come, the 29-year-old will be free to play their first qualifier in October.

The Mainz centre-back was reported to CONMEBOL by the Uruguayan Football Association, but the Football Federation of Chile were successful in cutting the length of the ban.