LEEDS United's Liam Cooper has been suspended for six matches by the Football Association for stamping on the head of Reading defender Reece Oxford.
Cooper was retrospectively charged with violent conduct by the Football Association yesterday following the ugly incident in the 75th minute of Reading's 1-0 win on Saturday.
The 25-year-old accepted the charge and was banned for five matches by the FA's Independent Regulatory Commission this morning.
However, that was increased to six matches on account of it being Cooper's second red card of the season following his dismissal against Sutton in the FA Cup earlier this year.
Leeds United defender Liam Cooper charged following incident in Championship game against Reading at the weekend:https://t.co/y6LOlJYwal
— The FA (@FA) 4 April 2017
Cooper's stamp received widespread condemnation from Reading fans, though Leeds chief executive Ben Mansford has issued as statement in support of the centre-back following the FA's decision.
Mansford said: “We are disappointed by the FA's decision to ban Liam Cooper for six matches following an incident in our game with Reading on Saturday.
Only just seen the Liam Cooper stamp on Reece Oxford - absolutely disgraceful. Miles worse than @OfficialTM_3. pic.twitter.com/gdHPQPbMfE
— Kris Temple (@kristemple) April 2, 2017
“After careful consideration and consultation with the club, Liam pleaded guilty to the charges brought against him as he acknowledges that the coming together with Reece Oxford was reckless.
“However, in my experience Liam is an honest and genuine person who would never intend to hurt another player.
“Liam is a leader and his influence in the dressing room will still play a major role in the remaining fixtures this season.”
Complete inconsistency again @FA. Liam Cooper admits stamp gets 6 game ban. Tyrone Mings contests charge and gets 5 games. SORT IT OUT.
— Chris White (@ChrisWhite_21) 5 April 2017
All Whites manager Garry Monk also defended Cooper's action during his post-match press conference on Saturday.
He said: “With my opinion of Liam, it’ll definitely be an accident and one that he didn’t mean to do. He’s 100 per cent not like that.”
The incident was missed by match referee Keith Stroud and his assistants at the time and no action was taken against Cooper on the pitch.
However, the FA were shown video footage on Monday and deemed the officials' punishment as "clearly insufficient".
📰 #LUFC Chief Executive Ben Mansford responds to Liam Cooper's suspension. Read more at https://t.co/FBLEES5xbd pic.twitter.com/ltukuyg8sH
— Leeds United (@LUFC) 5 April 2017
Cooper admitted the charge and was left out of Monk's squad last night as Leeds crashed 2-0 at Brentford.
He will return for their final match at Wigan on May 7 and he will be available for the play-offs should Monk's men finish in the top six.
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