FA crackdown on English clubs

FA crackdown on English clubs
REUTERS

LONDON, FEBRUARY 15: Four English Premier League clubs were charged with misconduct on Monday after a weekend of player violence on and off the pitch.

Leeds United, Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea and Wimbledon have all been accused of failing to control their players, FA spokesman Steve Double said.

Leeds United's Ireland International Ian Harte received a separate misconduct charge for allegedly stamping on Tottenham's Chris Perry during Saturday's Elland Road clash.

Chelsea's England midfielder Dennis Wise, Wimbledon's Ireland defender Kenny Cunningham and coach Mick Harford have also been charged after a confrontation in the players' tunnel following their match on Saturday.

The FA said it would investigate possible involvement in that incident by other players and officials.

Double said: ``As the result of an apparent trend towards collective intimidation of match officials, the FA is also today writing to clubs to warn they will be held responsible for players showing collective dissent towardsmatch officials.''

Dissent, ill-tempered clashes and bookings littered the top matches in the English Premier League on Saturday.

Manchester United's 3-0 defeat at Newcastle United saw the champions finish the match with 10 men. Four others were booked. Leeds United's 1-0 victory over Tottenham was peppered with eight yellow cards.

Manchester United had skipper Roy Keane sent off for two yellow cards and Andy Cole, Paul Scholes and Jaap Stam all went in referee Stephen Lodge's book. They were joined by Newcastle's Alan Shearer, the England captain.

Second-placed Leeds also had three players cautioned in the Irelland Road match which, at times, degenerated into a brawl.

The incident at Chelsea included an alleged assault on Chelsea's Italian manager Gianluca Vialli, who was reportedly hit in the players' tunnel after his side's 3-1 home win against Wimbledon.

Newspapers also reported Wimbledon's Norwegian manager Egilolsen had been knocked to the ground in the melee.

The violence comes during aseason that has seen referees come in for a deluge of criticism for the high number of yellow and red cards they showed. But dissent among players has reached crisis levels, according to many pundits.

Premier League referees' assessor Gerald Ashby accused players of exploiting the recent relaxation in the rules to curb the number of yellow and red cards issued.

Officials were urged to adopt a more tolerant approach by the Premier League last month. Ashby, himself a former Fifa referee, said: ``Since referees have relaxed the rules, the behaviour of the players has left a lot to be desired.

``The sort of dissent that is being seen, with players jabbing their finger at the referee, is not the picture that the game would want to be presented.''

There is a precedent for clubs to be docked points for incidents such as those that blighted Saturday's action, with Arsenal losing two points and Manchester United one following a mass free-for-all at Old Trafford in 1990-91.

Double said: ``The clubs we havecharged have 14 days to respond to the charges, and can request personal hearings if they so wish.

``The FA's Chief Executive Adam Crozier has today been in contact with the Professional Footballers' Association, the Premier League and the League Managers' Association who are all fully supportive of the action we have taken today.

``We are making it clear today that the behaviour of players towards match officials has been unacceptable.''