LONDON: Eden Hazard will be banned for only the original three matches for kicking a ball boy during Chelsea’s League Cup semi-final exit at Swansea after the FA decided not to punish him further.
Hazard was sent off for kicking 17-year-old Charlie Morgan as he attempted to retrieve the ball during the Blues’ 0-0 draw at the Liberty Stadium last week.
The FA had considered extending the Belgian’s suspension but Chelsea argued that three games was enough.
An FA statement read: “Chelsea player Eden Hazard will not have his standard three-match sanction for violent conduct increased. Following a hearing earlier today, an independent regulatory commission was of the opinion the existing three-match sanction for this offence was sufficient.”
Hazard sat out Chelsea’s draws against Brentford and Reading so will therefore be available for the club’s home game against Wigan which comes a week after the Blues’ trip to Newcastle this weekend.
Chelsea had argued that Hazard was quick to apologise after the game. The club are also thought to have pointed out that Swindon’s Matt Ritchie was only booked for grappling with Oxford United ball boy Aidan Hawtin in a similar incident last year.
Ballboy Morgan, a son of millionaire Swansea director Martin Morgan, was also criticised for preventing the player from retrieving the ball by laying on it.
As a result, the FA have urged clubs to take all necessary steps to make sure such an incident does not occur again.
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