Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has been charged with misconduct by England’s governing Football Association following his dismissal against Swansea City on Wednesday.
The Italian was ordered off the touchline by referee Neil Swarbrick near the end of the first half of Chelsea’s 1-0 win in the Premier League after complaining angrily about Swansea being awarded a goal-kick.
Conte later apologised to Swarbrick and fourth official Lee Mason, who was patrolling the technical areas, saying: “It’s right to apologise for what happened during the game. I apologised to both of them. In the first half, I saw Swansea wasting time. I said this a few times to the fourth official. I didn’t see anything change. I was frustrated with this situation.”
Conte added: “I tried to tell him again. Then the referee took this decision. For sure I made a mistake. I was frustrated. I was a bit animated. For this reason the fourth official lost his patience. The fault is mine, not the fourth official’s.”
But Conte’s post-match contrition did not stop the FA taking action on Thursday. Wednesday’s incident at Stamford Bridge happened to be the first time Conte got his marching orders in English football, and he could now be fined or even given a touchline ban. Conte has until 6:00 pm local time (1800 GMT) on Tuesday to respond to the FA’s charge.
