Chelsea FC defensive midfielder Nemanja Matic had his ban reduced by the Football Associati..."/> Chelsea FC defensive midfielder Nemanja Matic had his ban reduced by the Football Associati..."/>
The Top Flight
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Chelsea FC Outraged Over Nemanja Matic Decision

By Lou Flavius

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Chelsea FC defensive midfielder Nemanja Matic had his ban reduced by the Football Association today.

This could have been good news for Matic and the Blues, if it were reduced by more than one game, but an Independent Regulatory Commission saw it fit to only scratch one match from the suspension.

This means that the Serbian will miss the crucial Capital One Cup final vs Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, plus the following Premier League match.

Matic — who was sent off during Chelsea’s home match against Burnley on Saturday — was automatically suspended for three matches after seeing straight red, but the FA — upon receiving facts from Chelsea — decided to have his suspension reduced to two matches.

In a statement released on their official website, the FA gave their reasoning behind the decision.

"“The violent response of Mr. Matic to the nature of the tackle cannot be condoned and does not vindicate his subsequent actions. The members of the Commission did, however, accept the mitigation in respect of the level of force used by Mr. Matic and the nature of the contact he made with Mr. Barnes of Burnley FC.“Having made those considerations we determined that the standard punishment of a three-match suspension would be clearly excessive and, therefore, ordered that the suspension be reduced to two matches.”"

Chelsea were not impressed, releasing their own statement after the verdict was given. People at the club believe that the tackle which Matic received from Ashley Barnes was reckless and career-threatening; they had the support of a worldwide audience.

"“The Chelsea Football Club Board is extremely disappointed and frustrated that the FA Regulatory Commission has today decided not to reduce Nemanja Matic’s suspension to the maximum extent permitted under FA rules.”–Chelseafc.com"

This certainly comes as a huge blow to the Blues, Matic has been everything a defensive midfielder should be since rejoining. He keeps them grounded, commandeering the transition from defense to offense with ease.

The midfielder averages a team high 3.8 tackles and 2.2 interceptions per contest, while boasting an 87.1 percent pass accuracy. He will be sorely missed on Sunday, and Chelsea have every right to feel hard-done-by right now.

To make matters worse, Barnes has received no punishment; both the referee and the FA let him off the hook.

Maybe the ‘campaign’ is serious after all. Chelsea and Matic were seriously let down by the governing body. The victim is being made to look like a villain in this plot, and this ruling clearly shows that players are not protected in this league.

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The only ones who are being protected are referees. No matter how incompetent and useless they decide to be on a given day, they know that the bosses will have their backs.

The FA seems to be all about protecting the integrity of the game, they move swiftly to fine managers who — according to them — ‘bring the game into disrepute’ by speaking their minds. They are the ones bring the game down with such decisions, and it’s a pity that nothing can really be done.

The good thing about football, though — it always evens itself out. The perfect storyline in May would be Chelsea winning the league while Burnley get relegated on the very last day.

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