'End of reforms' after Blatter banisher booted

MANAMA - FIFA bosses on Tuesday recommended replacing the ethics judge who helped bring down Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini, prompting accusations that the move was politically motivated.

At a five-hour meeting of the FIFA council in Bahrain, chaired by president Gianni Infantino, it was decided to replace German Hans-Joachim Eckert and ethics investigator Cornel Borbely.

In response, a furious Eckert and Borbely said in a statement their removals effectively meant the "de facto end of FIFA's reform efforts".