The Football Association have fined both West Bromwich Albion and Chelsea for failing to control their their players during an ill-tempered game at Stamford Bridge earlier this month.
West Brom came from behind on two different occasions to earn themselves a draw in the match, but there were numerous flashpoints concerning both sets of supporters. Chelsea’s forward Diego Costa was involved in several contentious moments, most notably with West Brom’s Claudio Yacob after he was tripped in the game.
Yacob was already on a yellow card when he brought Costa down and Tony Pulis, the West Brom manager, substituted him shortly after. Guus Hiddink, Chelsea’s interim manager who was brought in after the club’s owner, Roman Abramovich, sacked Jose Mourinho last year, had some choice words about the referee’s performance after the match.
Speaking to Jon Moss, the fourth official, about Anthony Taylor’s performance in the middle of the pitch Hiddink said, “I told him: ‘This is one of the worst referees of the Premier League I have experienced’. He said to me ‘you haven’t seen me yet’, which was a beautiful remark I think”.
Chelsea have been fined £65,000 by the FA whilst West Brom face a £35,000 fine. In a statement the Football Association confirmed that the financial punishment had been doled out because both Premier League clubs ‘failed to ensure their players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion’.