Fulham’s head coach, Marco Silva, has been accused of misconduct due to comments he made following his team’s defeat to Manchester United in the FA Cup.
Silva received a red card during the match after a 72nd-minute incident resulted in United being awarded a penalty by referee Chris Kavanagh.
The Football Association claims that Silva’s post-match remarks “imply bias and/or question the integrity of the match official, and/or bring the game into disrepute,” constituting improper conduct. Silva, aged 45, has until March 29th to respond.
This misconduct charge is in addition to a previous charge against Silva for abusive behavior towards match officials during the team’s 3-1 quarter-final loss at Old Trafford.
Silva is also facing an improper conduct charge for allegedly throwing a water bottle in the direction of the assistant referee.
During the game, a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) check resulted in Brazil winger Willian being sent off for a deliberate handball on the line, and Kavanagh sent Silva to the stands for his actions on the touchline.
Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic was also shown a straight red card for pushing Kavanagh and may face a lengthy ban.
Silva expressed frustration with Kavanagh’s officiating during the post-match interview, citing the team’s prior game against West Ham, where they lost due to two clear handball goals, with Kavanagh as the referee at that time.
Silva’s comments indicate that the team has had a difficult season with Kavanagh’s refereeing decisions.