Wigan Athletic boss Roberto Martinez is in hot water with the FA over their perceived notion that the Latics boss breached FA rule E3 and in doing so brought the game into disrepute
The charge relates to comments made by Bobby about match referee Michael Oliver following defeat at Old Trafford against Manchester United on September 15th
The young ref awarded United a penalty after two minutes when Danny Welbeck blatantly dove with Al Habsi close by, challenges were flying in, Paul Scholes cleaned out Shaun Maloney on the edge of the Latics box with a two footed lunge, not even a free kick was given for that challenge
The one that got Martinez most livid though was the Welbeck foul on Di Santo, as clear a red card incident as you’ll see, referee took no action, this isn’t the first time that the Latics have been dealt a bad hand at Old Trafford and we certainly aren’t the first club that it has happened to, you’d think the FA would take some notice instead of trying to keep the managers quiet
An FA spokesperson confirmed the charge to the media – ‘The charge is in relation to an alleged breach of FA Rule E3 concerning media comments which implied that the match referee and/or match officials in general are motivated by bias and/or brought the game into disrepute.’
For those who missed what Bobby said, here in an excerpt – ‘It was shocking, as bad a decision as you are ever likely to see in the Premier League
‘Michael Oliver is a very capable referee, who has been outstanding in many big games, but it was clear from the opening minutes that he was not going to measure both teams the same way.
‘In that last challenge by Welbeck, he had his foot over the ball as he went in on Franco Di Santo. It was completely reckless and dangerous, and under the current regulations, it should be a red card, whether you play for Wigan, Manchester United or anyone else.
‘We had a player sent off here last season, and it was rescinded straightaway. Two seasons ago, we had two players sent off. Now this. I just feel it is a difficult place for referees. They need to be strong, and they need to be very, very experienced. They need to know how to handle the occasion. It’s not about handling the game here, it’s the occasion.
‘Welbeck should have been shown a straight red, and Paul Scholes had two bad challenges that were worthy of yellow cards. We had James McArthur booked for something very similar, yet Scholes got away with both. I cannot understand how those same challenges can be judged in different ways.’
Martinez has until 4pm tomorrow (Thursday) to answer the charge
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