Edinson Cavani has had a turbulent opening to his Manchester United career.

On the field he has, for the most part, had to be content with sporadic opportunities, with only two starts in the Premier League thus far.

The 33-year-old veteran has showcased his poachers instinct and star quality on a handful of occasions, scoring a brace from the substitutes bench to help United overturn a two-goal half-time deficit at the end of November. 

However, the highlight of his Red Devils career so far has been tarnished by the events that followed in the aftermath of proceedings. 

Naturally, the Uruguayan was hailed by friends and followers on social media following his match-winning display from the bench, and he responded to one congratulatory message with the Spanish term "negrito", which translates as "black".

Cavani soon deleted the social media post but has since been punished by the FA with a three-match ban.

The FA had this to say in a statement concerning their decision: "Edinson Cavani has been suspended for three games, fined £100,000 and must complete face-to-face education after admitting a charge for a breach of FA Rule E3 in relation to a social media post on Sunday 29 November 2020.

"A comment posted on the Manchester United FC striker's Instagram page was insulting, abusive, improper and brought the game into disrepute contrary to FA Rule E3.1.

"The post also constitutes an "aggravated breach", which is defined in FA Rule E3.2, as it included reference, whether express or implied, to colour and/or race and/or ethnic origin.

"An independent Regulatory Commission was appointed to decide the sanction and its written reasons will be published in due course."

But that decision has not marked the end of the controversy. 

Indeed, the Uruguayan FA have now got involved and issued a statement of their own, accusing the English FA of their own act of racism by failing to understand the culture or way of life of the South American nation. 

The full statement can be seen below: 

In light of the Uruguayan FA's statement, Cavani's compatriot and Atletico Madrid striker Luis Suarez responded with a pair of emojis which depicted his support. 

Suarez was punished for using the same language during his time at Liverpool and, judging by his social media post, clearly feels aggrieved by the stain on his legacy. 

It will be interesting to see how the English FA respond.