West Ham's Arthur Masuaku has been handed a six-match ban by the FA after being shown a red card for spitting at Nick Powell on Saturday against Wigan.

Masuaku was dismissed in the 49th minute following a collision with Powell on the side of the pitch as the Hammers crashed out of the FA Cup fourth round 2-0.

The 24-year-old defender will miss six vital Premier League games against Crystal Palace, Brighton, Watford, Liverpool, Swansea and Burnley.

Arthur Masuaku has received a six-match ban from the FA after spitting at Nick Powell (left)

The defender will miss West Ham's next six games in the Premier League due to his suspension

Following the shock defeat at the DW Stadium, West Ham boss David Moyes described Masuaku's actions as 'despicable'.

'It was despicable,' Moyes said after the game. 'I've not seen it from him. We like him, he's a really good boy around the club... it is out of character.

'He will deserve everything he gets and he'll get something he deserves from us. It's unacceptable.'

Masuaku himself clearly regretted his actions following the final whistle as he took to Twitter to issue an apology to everyone impacted by the incident.

Masuaku was shown a straight red card in the 49th minute for spitting at Powell on Saturday

He said: 'I want to say sorry for my actions yesterday - I let down my team-mates, the manager, coaches, board and the fans.

'I am very sad because the manager and coaches have put a lot of faith in me but I will work very hard to try and win that back.

'It was in the heat of the moment and out of character for me but I know it was totally unacceptable and I will learn from the first red card of my career.'

The Frenchman will sit out a key part of the Premier League season as the Hammers look to steer further clear of the relegation zone.

Moyes' men sit 11th in the table, but only four points above the danger zone with 14 matches remaining.