Ferguson faces ban for criticizing referee
Posted March 3, 2011 2:15 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
LONDON — Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson was charged with improper conduct by The Football Association on Thursday over his harsh criticism of a referee following Tuesday’s 2-1 loss at Chelsea.
Ferguson was furious that Martin Atkinson failed to dismiss David Luiz when the Chelsea defender fouled Wayne Rooney, having already been booked.
Shortly afterward, Atkinson awarded a penalty kick when United defender Chris Smalling fouled Yuri Zhirkov and Frank Lampard scored the winning goal from the spot.
“You want a fair referee, or a strong referee anyway — and we didn’t get that,” Ferguson said on United’s in-house TV channel. “I must say, when I saw who the referee was I feared it. I feared the worst.”
The FA said that Ferguson has until 4 p.m. local time on Tuesday to respond to the charge of “improper conduct relating to media comments.”
If Ferguson is found guilty, a further two-match ban will be triggered because half of a four-match ban for questioning referee Alan Wiley’s fitness last season was suspended until the end of this season.
United has a four-point lead over Arsenal at the top of the Premier League going into Sunday’s match against Liverpool.
