Papiss Cisse And Jonny Evans Charged By FA

Newcastle United's Papiss Cisse and Manchester United's Jonny Evans have been charged by The FA following the spitting incident in Wednesday's game. TV footage showed the Northern Ireland international spitting down towards the floor in the direction of his opponent. Cisse reacted by putting his head towards Evans and seemingly spitting back at him, although it is not clear if it landed on the central defender. The Football Association's action comes after both men spoke out on the issue. Senegalese striker Cisse issued an apology through Newcastle's official website for his part in proceedings, although Evans has denied spitting at his opponent. The FA has acted swiftly in charging the pair, in a brief statement, they said:

€œThe charges relate to an alleged breach of FA Rule E1 in that in or around the 38th minute of the game the two players spat at each other. €œThe incidents were not seen by the match officials but caught on video. €œBoth players have until 6pm on Friday 6 March 2015 to respond to the charge. €œIn Premier League matches, if an incident has not been seen by the match officials, a three-man panel of former elite referees will be asked by The FA to review the footage independently of each other. €œThey will then advise what, if any action, they believe the match referee should have taken had it been witnessed at the time. €œFor an FA charge to follow, all three panel members must agree it is a sending-off offence. €œIn this instance, the decision by the panel was unanimous in respect of both players.€

Both men are expected to be handed six game bans for their respective parts in the incident. However, The Magpies' number nine will be banned for an extra game because of a previous violent conduct ban for elbowing Everton€™s Seamus Coleman, ruling him out until the final three games of the season.