Fabregas what was he doing on the pitch
dressed like a hoodie.
Cesc Fabregas is set to escape punishment over the
allegations of spitting which marred Arsenal's progress to the FA
Cup semi-finals because the match officials failed to monitor the
tunnel area.
But the midfielder came under renewed attack from Hull City
manager Phil Brown yesterday and his snarling post-match antics are
bound to attract further scrutiny.
Referee Mike Riley and his assistants abandoned normal
after-match protocol on Tuesday night as they felt under siege from
angry Hull City players disputing the late winner by William
Gallas.
Usually it is the job of the fourth official and the linesman on
the touchline nearest the tunnel to move inside and keep an eye on
players as they enter the dressing rooms, while the referee and the
other linesman stay outside to make sure everyone leaves the pitch
safely.
But after an incident-packed tie at the Emirates Stadium, Riley
and his team headed quickly to their room to avoid the protests.
They did not witness any flashpoint involving Fabregas and Hull's
assistant manager Brian Horton and there are no CCTV cameras in the
tunnel area.
Fabregas, who missed the game through injury and watched from
seats behind the Arsenal bench, has been accused by Brown of
spitting at Horton's feet after a verbal exchange which started on
the pitch after Arsenal's 2-1 win.
Fabregas denies the allegations but Brown reiterated his claims
yesterday and the FA have written to Brown and Horton asking for an
explanation. Asked in a BBC 5 Live interview whether others had
seen the spitting incident, Brown snapped: 'Are you questioning my
integrity? I witnessed it.'
Asked whether he stood by his post-match remarks, Brown added:
'Absolutely, 100 per cent. For one, being on the pitch after the
game; two, dressing in the manner he was dressed and three, the
pictures emphasise the aggression he was showing to my players and
staff.
'Then I witnessed him going down the tunnel and turning round
and spitting at my assistant manager's feet. Whatever way you look
at it, it doesn't matter, he addressed that spitting incident at my
assistant manager.
'The referee and linesmen had gone down the tunnel and were
probably well inside their room, the same as Mr Wenger and the
majority of the Arsenal staff and players.'
Riley's match report contains no mention of the incident and the
lack of independent witnesses will make any investigation very
difficult.
Perversely, the one person who may end up facing an FA charge is
Brown. The FA were last night studying his wide ranging post-match
rant which included an attack on referee Riley, who he claimed had
been influenced by the home crowd and Arsenal manager Arsene
Wenger.
Brown is due to appear before an FA disciplinary committee today
to answer a charge of improper conduct arising from an FA Cup
third-round replay at St James' Park in January, when he and
Newcastle manager Joe Kinnear were both sent to the stands after a
bust-up.
The Hull City boss has developed a reputation as an abrasive
character and his No 2 Horton is also renowned for standing his
ground on the touchline.
City will be fined £25,000 for accumulating six yellow cards
during the Arsenal game but yesterday Brown was still fuming about
what he considers to be the disrespect shown to his club by
Fabregas.
The Spaniard is thought to have repeatedly told Hull City's
players and their coaching staff to 'f*** off back up north you
w*****s'. Sportsmail can reveal that Hull City's players then had
to be restrained from attacking the Arsenal midfielder and his
teammate Emmanuel Adebayor in the tunnel.
Despite missing the flashpoint, Riley is unlikely to be in
trouble for making a quick dash for his dressing room. It is only a
recommendation that the four officials try to police the tunnel
area, brought into play when the PFA blocked a proposal for
compulsory tunnel cameras. The placement of cameras is left to the
discretion of individual clubs.
The quarter-final at Arsenal had been a stormy affair, not
helped by the pressure heaped on Riley from Wenger and his team to
stop what they thought was time-wasting by Hull after they went 1-0
up in the 13th minute. That issue triggered the initial row between
Horton and Wenger, which simmered for the rest of the game.
Robin van Persie, captain for the night in the absence of
Fabregas and Kolo Toure and scorer of Arsenal's first goal, said:
'It was very frustrating. I felt like they stole almost 10
minutes.
'Sixty thousand people come to see a football match, not to just
sit there waiting. I was quite gutted about it and I told the
referee a few times because when you play football, especially on
an occasion like this, you should at least try.'
