Manchester City have been charged for failing to ensure their players behaved in a proper manner during their clash against Tottenham, although Erling Haaland has escaped his own punishment.
The City players, including Haaland, furiously reacted to referee Simon Hooper denying them a match-winning chance deep into stoppage time of their 3-3 draw against Spurs at the Etihad Stadium.
The City players were left apoplectic by Hooper’s bizarre decisionGetty
Haaland had shrugged off the challenge from Emerson Royal to play Jack Grealish through on goal, but referee Simon Hooper pulled play back to award the hosts a free-kick despite initially signalling an advantage.
Haaland continued to voice his anger as he left the field after the final whistle, having also got into a heated dispute with Spurs midfielder Giovani Lo Celso, and he later went even further by posting a remark criticising Hooper on social media.
“Manchester City have been charged with a breach of FA Rule 20.1 after their players surrounded the match official during their Premier League fixture against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday 3 December 2023,” read a statement posted on the FA Spokesperson account on Twitter.
The club is likely to be fined if the charges are admitted or proved. However, it seems as though no further action will be taken against Haaland himself.
There’s been a big crackdown on player behaviour by the Football Association, Premier League and EFL this season. This is the first charge in the top flight for surrounding the referee in the 2023/24 campaign.
It is a bad decision and everyone saw it,” City star Bernardo Silva said. “But at the end we are all humans.
“The referee probably is the first one to know it was a very, very bad decision because he (Grealish) was one on one with the keeper and it could have given us the three points.
“It is a tough one to take, but in the end it is what it is, it’s football, and sometimes people make mistakes.”
Haaland was particularly animated by Hooper’s decision but will not have any further action taken against himGetty
It’s understood Hooper will not be stood down from refereeing duties for the Sheffield United v Liverpool match on Wednesday.
The draw means City haven’t won in any of their last three Premier League outings. They’re currently third in the division, three points off leaders Arsenal.
