Drogba, Ferguson hit with bans

19th November 2008

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and Chelsea striker Didier Drogba were both handed bans on Tuesday, on a busy day for the Football Association's disciplinary chiefs.

Ferguson has been given a two-match touchline ban and £10,000 fine by the FA following his row with referee Mike Dean this month.

The 66-year-old was fuming that Dean did not send off Hull defender Michael Turner for a foul on Michael Carrick during United's 4-3 Barclays Premier League win at Old Trafford.

That Dean then awarded Hull a penalty for an innocuous Rio Ferdinand challenge on Bernard Mendy only infuriated the Scot even more.

Ferguson served a two-match ban last term for a finger-jabbing rant at referee Mark Clattenburg following a defeat at Bolton.

The Scot's latest suspension starts on December 2 and means he will not be pitchside for the Carling Cup match against Blackburn the following day.

He will also miss out on a touchline reunion with former United captain Roy Keane, who brings his Sunderland side to Old Trafford for a Premier League match on December 6.

Ferguson had claimed the FA were "dying" to hit him with his latest improper conduct charge.

At a meeting at the City of Manchester Stadium today, the FA's Regulatory Commission took into account Ferguson's admission of the charge and his previous disciplinary record.

Drogba, meanwhile, has been given a three-match ban after admitting a charge of violent conduct. Drogba threw a coin back into the Burnley crowd after scoring in Chelsea's Carling Cup fourth-round defeat last Wednesday.