Aleksandar Mitrovic’s disciplinary hearing will take place on Monday with the Fulham striker facing the possibility of an extended ban and, in turn, the Football Association likely to come under pressure to explain why a string of similar incidents have gone unpunished over a 20-year period.
Mitrovic has been charged with misconduct after pushing referee Chris Kavanagh during Fulham’s FA Cup quarter-final defeat at Manchester United two weekends ago. Mitrovic has apologised for the incident and accepted a three-match ban.
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However, the Serbia international believes he should not be treated disproportionately when a number of incidents involving high-profile players from other Premier League clubs have not resulted in any form of disciplinary action. The rules governing these decisions are likely to come under intense scrutiny.
One example shows Joe Hart, then at Manchester City, leaning his forehead into referee Michael Oliver during a Manchester derby in 2014 and appearing to make contact with the official. Hart was not penalised and the FA took no action.
Another incident shows David de Gea, the United goalkeeper, running aggressively towards referee Craig Pawson to protest that he had been fouled in the build-up to Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino shooting past him in a match at Anfield in 2020.
De Gea felt he had been challenged unfairly by Virgil van Dijk and, running out of his goalmouth, briefly banged into Pawson, angrily pointing a finger into the official’s face. The goal was eventually ruled out after VAR intervention and the game continued without any real focus on De Gea’s conduct and no retrospective action.
The FA’s position is that if an alleged offence is seen by the referee, who decides not to take action, the governing body will issue disciplinary measures to over-rule the original decision only if it is regarded as an extraordinary incident. If a red card is shown, as happened with Mitrovic, the FA can then decide whether the punishment is sufficient or needs to be upgraded.
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While Mitrovic accepts he lost his cool at Old Trafford, it leaves the FA open to possible questions at Monday’s hearing about alleged double standards and inconsistencies in the disciplinary process. Mitrovic, in theory, would be entitled to argue other players have been treated more leniently for similar offences.
That goes all the way back to Thierry Henry’s time at Arsenal when the French striker, angered by a challenge from Chris Perry in a FA Cup semi-final against Tottenham Hotspur, gave referee Graham Poll a two-handed push to the chest. No action was taken.
This season, Bruno Fernandes got away with giving the linesman a one-handed push in the back after a throw-in decision went against him in United’s 7-0 defeat at Liverpool.
Fernandes was running back to restart play at the time and did not face any punishment from the referee. As the incident was seen by the match officials, the FA decided it was not serious enough to warrant retrospective action – in other words, not at the level of Mitrovic’s transgression.
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Mitrovic is facing further sanctions because the FA ruled it was “clearly insufficient” to stick to the three-match ban that would normally be applied for showing that form of aggression towards a match official.
There have been calls for the FA to make an example of the player, with former referees’ chief Keith Hackett calling for a 10-match ban, and it feels almost certain that his three-match suspension will be extended. The FA launched its Respect campaign towards referees in 2008 and, it seems, the governing body wants to show how seriously it takes these offences.
The problem for the FA is that taking a hardline stance will inevitably leave them open to arguments that it is not in line with a number of previous incidents that have not led to additional punishments or, in some cases, any action whatsoever.
Lee Cattermole, for example, never had to face a disciplinary case for appearing to square up to referee Phil Dowd during a game for Sunderland against arch-rivals Newcastle in 2010. Cattermole, already shown a yellow card, went nose to nose with Dowd but was not punished further.
“I regret my actions that led to me being sent off,” Mitrovic said earlier this week. “I allowed my frustration to get the better of me, and how I reacted was wrong. I was trying to get the referee’s attention, but I appreciate that I should not have put my hands on him and I understand why he showed me a red card.
Marco Silva, the Fulham manager, was also sent off during a 3-1 defeat for Fulham that erupted into controversy after Willian gave away a penalty and was red-carded in the process.
“I have accepted the three-match ban for my red card,” Mitrovic added. “I have spoken to Chris Kavanagh to apologise, and I have volunteered to accept a club fine.”
In 1998, Paolo Di Canio was banned for 11 matches for pushing referee Paul Alcock during a game between Sheffield Wednesday and Arsenal. That was a two-handed shove, knocking the official to the ground, and therefore seen as a top-of-the-range offence. Similarly, David Prutton of Southampton was given a 10-match ban for shoving Alan Wiley, also in a match against Arsenal, in 2005. Both players were sent off at the time.
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(Top photo: PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
