Chris Wilder has been fined £11,500 by the Football Association for his scathing comments about an assistant referee eating a sandwich.
The Sheffield United manager said one of referee Tony Harrington’s assistants went to see Harrington after last month’s 3-2 defeat to Crystal Palace and found him eating the food in question. And I got angry. Wilder, who accepted the charges, branded the scene a “total lack of respect” and called Harrington’s performance “ridiculous” in a post-match interview with BBC Radio Sheffield.
“Chris Wilder has been fined £11,500 for his comments in the media following the Premier League match between Sheffield United and Crystal Palace on Tuesday 30th January,” the FA said in a statement. “It was argued that the manager’s comments amounted to inappropriate conduct in that they implied bias, attacked the integrity of referees and referees in general, and brought the game into disrepute.”
“Chris Wilder accepted the charges and the independent regulatory commission fined him after a hearing.”
Wilder’s fine follows charges leveled against him over verbal abuse on Valentine’s Day, in which Wilder said it was “another outrageous performance from a referee.” Any 50-50 or tough decision is against us and if that’s something we have to deal with between now and the end of the season, we’ll deal with it. But I’m not going to just fly off the radar and say nothing. I went to the referee and told him about it.
After newsletter promotion
“One of his assistants was eating a sandwich at the time, which I thought was a complete lack of respect. “He was enjoying a sandwich while talking to a Premier League manager. I hope
