- Chelsea drew 2-2 with Tottenham on Monday night in bad-tempered derby
- A huge row between both sets of players broke out in front of the tunnel
- Cesc Fabregas is said to have contributed to Spurs stars losing tempers
- Mousa Dembele could miss start of next season with ban for eye-gouging
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The
FA have charged the London sides for incidents in the 45th and 87th
minutes, as well as for a bust-up between both sets of players in front
of the tunnel after full-time.
The Football
Association have come down hard on Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur and
charged both clubs for failing to control their players during the
Battle of the Bridge on Monday night.
Mousa
Dembele, meanwhile, has been charged separately for violent conduct
after the Tottenham midfielder appeared to gouge the eye of Chelsea
striker Diego Costa in the first half.
The teams headed off down the tunnel after the full-time whistle when both sets of players clashed on Monday
Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink fell into the pit of the manager's dugout during a shoving match
Mousa Dembele's eye-gouge on Diego Costa may be of particular interest to FA disciplinary chiefs
Claims
that Dembele will be slapped with a 10-game suspension surprised those
behind the scenes at the FA on Wednesday morning. Luis Suarez was handed
a 10-game ban in 2013 for biting Branislav Ivanovic and that would be
seen as a severe punishment.
Dembele does face a ban in excess of the usual three games, however, and has until 6pm on Thursday to respond to the charge.
The
incident in the 45th minute saw Danny Rose and Willian booked after the
pair clashed, while a late sliding tackle by Eric Dier on Eden Hazard
in the 87th minute sparked a mass melee.
Then, after full-time, both teams were caught in a brawl as they headed down the tunnel.
Despite claims that the trouble continued inside the tunnel, Sportsmail understands it was broken up quickly, with Chelsea captain John Terry among those trying to keep the peace.
Guus Hiddink was particularly forceful in getting his players back to their dressing room.
Terry
and Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino also exchanged words at the
top of the tunnel as they tried to calm their teams down. Stewards also
lined the corridor in a bid to try to avoid further arguments from
breaking out.
Tottenham
have also been slapped with a £25,000 fine for having nine players
shown yellow cards, while Chelsea received three cautions.
Cesc Fabregas is said to have been Tottenham's antagoniser during Chelsea's bad-tempered 2-2 draw
Erik Lamela stepped on Cesc Fabregas' hand after the Chelsea midfielder went down following a foul
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A
statement from the FA read: 'Both Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur have
been charged for three breaches of FA Rule E20 for failing to control
their players and/or officials.
'It
follows incidents which occurred in the 45th and 87th minutes and also
at the end of the game at Stamford Bridge on Monday night [2 May 2016].
'Both clubs have until 6pm on Monday 9 May 2016 to respond to their charge.'
They
then added: 'Meanwhile, Mousa Dembele has been charged for an alleged
act of violent conduct which was not seen by the match officials but
caught on video during the same game.
'The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder was involved in an incident with Chelsea's Diego Costa near the end of the first half.
'Further,
it is alleged the player's behaviour constituted violent conduct in
circumstances where the standard punishment of three matches that would
otherwise apply is clearly insufficient.
'The player has until 6pm on Thursday 5 May 2016 to respond to the charge.'
Premier League official Mark Clattenburg had a tough night at Stamford Bridge on Monday evening
Clattenburg (centre) tries to break up a confrontation during a fiery encounter at Stamford Bridge