Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic is set to be handed a lengthy ban for pushing referee Chris Kavanagh in his side’s 3-1 defeat to Manchester United.
The Serbian striker lashed out in the direction of the official during a mad minute at Old Trafford that also saw Willian sent off for a goal-line handball and manager Marco Silva given his marching orders. Mitrovic was immediately brandished a red card for his actions, with the FA taking a close look at the incident.
They are now reportedly set to push for a punishment more than the standard three-game ban. According to The i, The FA are expected to make the claim that the standard suspension is “clearly insufficient punishment” and push for an extended ban.
Kavanagh’s report from the match will be reviewed by the FA before a decision is made. They have until 1pm on Tuesday to contact Fulham to make the claim of "clearly insufficient punishment", at which point a regulatory commission would then determine whether the player serves a standard suspension or an extended one.
There have been some calls for Mitrovic to miss the remainder of the campaign. Former Premier League referee Mark Halsey claimed that the striker should be banned for ten games.
Writing in a column in The Sun, he said: “Mitrovic has technically assaulted Kavanagh by shoving his elbow into him and has then gone at the official with a volley of abuse. The FA have a duty of care to referees and we cannot have this at any level of football.
“They have to set an example by sanctioning Mitrovic heavily and I would expect both clubs to be charged with failing to control their players. Mitrovic should be hit with a ten-game ban for his part in the madness.”
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Should the FA agree with Halsey's view, then that would see the striker miss all but one of Fulham ’s final 11 games of the season. He would return for the final day clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford in the Premier League.
Fulham boss Silva gave his view on the incident after the final whistle in a furious post-match interview. He claimed that Mitrovic should have known better but suggested that other similar incidents have gone unpunished this term.
Speaking to BBC Sport, the Portuguese manager said: “Mitro should control his emotions a bit. I would like to check if they did the same with other players this season, but we should have emotional control in the moment.
"Of course it is a moment for him [Mitro] to learn. He was involved in two situations in the box, the ref didn’t check, he has to be in control of the moment.”
Domestic action now takes a pause for two weeks for the latest round of international fixtures. Fulham and Mitrovic will likely know if there is any further punishment before their next outing that comes against Bournemouth at the start of next month.
