Diego Costa is facing up to the prospect of a three-match ban after the Football Association charged him and Gabriel Paulista as well as Chelsea and Arsenal over the fractious derby at Stamford Bridge.
Costa has been charged with violent conduct; Gabriel, the Arsenal defender, with improper conduct, and the clubs with failing to control their players.
The flurry of charges were announced in a statement released by the governing body on Monday evening which confirmed the referee, Mike Dean, had not witnessed Costa putting his hands in Laurent Koscielny’s face and, more significantly, the forward’s flailing left arm making contact with his marker.
Gabriel, who was booked for confronting Costa over that initial incident and was sent off moments later for kicking the striker, risks seeing his three-match ban extended if an improper conduct charge centring on his apparent reluctance to leave the pitch is upheld. Dean, whose performance was criticised by Arsène Wenger, will officiate West Ham’s game against Norwich City on Saturday as planned.
Chelsea were considering their options on Monday as they reviewed the charge brought against their forward. The referee confirmed in his report he had shown Costa a yellow card for chest-bumping Koscielny to the turf after the France defender had reacted to the pair’s clash seconds earlier. However, as that first contact with Koscielny had not been witnessed by the referee, the FA had the power to refer the case to a panel of three former elite referees.
They reviewed the video footage to determine whether an offence worthy of a red card had taken place. “Each referee panel member reviews the video footage independently of one another to determine whether they consider it a sending off offence,” said the FA in a statement. “For retrospective action to be taken, and an FA charge to follow, the decision by the panel must be unanimous.” Costa has until 6pm on Tuesday to accept or deny the charge.
If found guilty, the player would miss Wednesday’s League Cup tie at Walsall – a game in which he was always due to be among the substitutes – and the Premier League matches at Newcastle and at home to Southampton. The Spain forward has not been sent off for five years, though this would be his second retrospective sanction since moving to England in 2014 after the FA imposed a three-match ban for a stamp, having referred to video footage, on Liverpool’s Emre Can during a League Cup semi-final game in January.
Costa’s team-mate, Kurt Zouma, has now clarified comments made in a television interview immediately after the Arsenal game, in which he claimed Costa “likes to cheat” by suggesting he had stumbled over the language barrier.
While Costa has drawn the attention, the case of Gabriel, who had initially appeared to be acting as peacemaker in the spat, is more complicated.
Arsenal have already submitted a dual appeal for wrongful dismissal and excessive punishment over the red card shown to the defender in first-half stoppage time. The centre-half flicked a heel at Costa as the pair continued their argument while retreating to the halfway line, prompting Dean, who consulted an assistant referee, to dismiss the Brazilian defender.
Wenger conceded his player had been at fault but under new guidance this season Arsenal have the right to contest the legitimacy of the red card and the three-match ban it carries.
Ultimately they are seeking to have the player’s suspension – which is due to begin against Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday – either quashed or, in a worst-case scenario, reduced to one or two games. The appeal will be considered on Tuesday.
The added complication now is the separate improper conduct charge issued to Gabriel for contesting Dean’s decision. The 24-year-old had to be ushered from the turf by his team-mate Hector Bellerin and Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic and Oscar, and eventually a member of the arena’s security staff. That offence, if upheld, would most likely lead to a fine but could potentially earn him a one-match ban in its own right. Arsenal are not expected to contest that charge, though there remains the rather unlikely scenario of Gabriel having his appeal for wrongful dismissal upheld only to be found guilty of improper conduct.
Santi Cazorla, who was also dismissed late on after receiving a second yellow card, was warned by the FA for his own behaviour having been shown a red card while both clubs have been charged with a failure to control their players. That perceived breach of FA Rule E20 centres on the flashpoint before the interval in the wake of Costa’s clash with Koscielny and, if proven, would normally result in a fine. Both clubs have until 6pm on Thursday to respond, with the same deadline applying to Gabriel’s improper conduct charge.
