German Denis banned 5 matches for punching opponent in locker room after match

Atalanta will be without striker German Denis for five of their last six Serie A matches this season.

The Argentine striker has been hit with the lengthy ban following a bizarre incident after Sunday's match against Empoli, in which he stormed into the opposing locker room and punched defender Lorenzo Tonelli.

Tonelli, though he denies any wrongdoing, was suspended one match by Serie A's disciplinary tribunal for uttering death threats to the Atalanta attacker.

"After the match, while still on the playing field, Empoli player Tonelli directed at Denis the seriously intimidating phrase ‘I will kill you and your family'," the tribunal said in a statement, courtesy of the Guardian.

"A few minutes later, Denis, together with a team mate, went into the Empoli dressing-room and, as soon as Tonelli approached, hit him with a violent punch in the face.

"After evaluating the severity of such violent conduct, which was totally out of order with any competitive context, German Denis is suspended for five games, effective immediately."

The length of the ban means Denis, who leads his team with eight goals on the campaign, will not be eligible to return until the final week of the season.

The moral of the story is clear: don't issue death threats to a man nicknamed The Tank. Your physical well-being will be in danger.