Cesc Fabregas’s red card, picked up on Monday night when he kicked the football at a crowd of people and it hit Chris Brunt on the head, would ordinarily be punished with a 3 game ban. However the FA have confirmed they are reducing the ban to just 1 game.
Chelsea argued that a 3 game ban would be “excessive” punishment for the act, with Mourinho declaring after the game that the referee’s decision to send the Spaniard off was “harsh” and “bizarre”.
The FA agreed with the Portuguese manager of the Premier League champions, saying in a statement, “A claim by Chelsea that the three-match suspension for Cesc Fabregas is excessive has been upheld by an Independent Regulatory Commission hearing”.
The decision by the FA to cut Fabregas’s ban down to just 1 game means that he will now only miss the match against Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on the final day of the season, rather than that game as well as the first two games of next season.
Although he won’t be able to appear on the pitch on Sunday, the Spaniard should still be able to celebrate the lifting of the Premier League trophy, which is due to take place at the Bridge after the full-time whistle. It should be a double celebration, given that Sunderland’s draw against Arsenal on Wednesday night ensured their survival in the league for another year.