The English Football Association has launched an investigation into an official complaint from Chelsea after the club accused referee Mark Clattenburg of verbally abusing two of their players in Sunday's defeat by Manchester United.
“The FA has begun an investigation relating to allegations made following Sunday's fixture at Stamford Bridge between Chelsea and Manchester United,” it said on its website (www.thefa.com) on Monday.
The affair is likely to plunge English soccer, which is only just recovering from one damaging crisis surrounding Chelsea, straight back into a new one involving the European champions.
Chelsea is to host United again in Wednesday's League Cup fourth-round match and although teams often rest leading players in the competition, the clash may take on extra significance given the controversy surrounding Sunday's Premier League encounter.
Chelsea said Clattenburg, who sent off two home players – Branislav Ivanovic and Fernando Torres – in the highly-charged 3-2 Stamford Bridge defeat, used “inappropriate language” towards two players.
The club would not name the players in question or what nature the remarks were, but a spokesman refused to deny that Nigerian midfielder John Obi Mikel had visited the referee's room after the game.
Mikel was booked for dissent during the second half.
Chelsea’s decision to lodge a complaint against the FIFA-listed referee is largely unprecedented.?
The club spokesman told reporters: “We have lodged a complaint to the Premier League match delegate with regards to inappropriate language used by the referee and directed at two of our players in two separate incidents.
“The match delegate will pass the complaint to the Football Association. We will make no further comment at this time.''
Clattenburg not only sent off two players but the officials rubbed salt into Chelsea's wounds by allowing Javier Hernandez's 75th minute goal that swung the outcome United's way to stand, even when he was marginally offside before scoring.
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