Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Bournemouth defender Tyrone Mings have been charged by the FA and are staring at a lengthy ban for violent conduct in their Premier League match over the weekend.
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The incident started when Mings stamped on Ibrahimovic's head in the 44th minute and moments later United had a corner and the Swedish striker caught Mings in the face with his elbow. While both players denied any wrongdoing, they could still be facing a ban as those incidents are both red card offences.
Both players have until 18.00 GMT today to respond to the charge. The Bournemouth defender could face an even longer ban as the FA have submitted a claim saying that his punishment is 'clearly insufficient'.
"The players were involved in two separate incidents in or around the 44th minute which were not seen by the match officials at the time but caught on video. Off-the-ball incidents which are not seen at the time by the match officials are referred to a panel of three former elite referees" said an FA statement.
"Each referee panel member will review the video footage independently of one another to determine whether they consider it a sending-off offence. For retrospective action to be taken, and an FA charge to follow, the decision of the panel must be unanimous."
If Ibrahimovic is found guilty he could miss Manchester United's all-important FA clash against Chelsea and their next two league games against Middlesbrough and West Brom. Despite having a strict policy to censure players for on field violence, United officials will not fine Ibrahimovic as they feel he was provoked by Mings.
Jose Mourinho sees Ibrahimovic as the victim in that whole incident and with the striker's future at Manchester United still not sorted, they don't want to upset him as Mourinho wants him to sign a new contract.
Mings, on the other hand, has piled more pressure on Eddie Howe as he could be suspended for at least six matches and given their current form, Bournemouth could do without any suspensions or injuries.
