Tottenham and Brighton have both been charged by the Football Association (FA) following the touchline fracas which led to red cards for Cristian Stellini and Roberto De Zerbi, though both coaches have avoided a touchline ban.
Stellini and De Zerbi were sent off by referee Stuart Atwell as tensions boiled over midway through the second half of Spurs’ 2-1 win last Saturday, with the two sets of coaching staff coming together in a mass confrontation in front of the dugouts at Spurs’ stadium.
Stellini was not involved in the scrum but was shown a straight red for failing to control his bench.
The FA have confirmed that both clubs have been charged with improper conduct and have until next Monday to respond, although the coaches escaped separate charges for their behaviour.
"Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion have been charged for a mass confrontation that took place during the 58th minute of their Premier League game on Saturday 8 April," read a statement from the FA on Wednesday.
"It’s alleged that both clubs failed to ensure their technical area occupants conducted themselves in an orderly fashion and/or do not behave in a way which is improper. Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion have until Monday 18 April to respond."
De Zerbi angrily confronted Stellini during the pair’s pre-match handshake and afterwards said he felt disrespected by his compatriot, although refused to say why.
The game was notable for a number of controversial decisions by the officials, with Brighton twice having goals disallowed by the VAR for handball, while they were denied a penalty by Atwell for a Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg trip on Kaoru Mitoma.
PGMOL, the referee’s body, has since apologised to the Seagulls and said they should have been awarded a spot-kick for the incident.
