Chelsea charged by FA for failing to control players

Chelsea were today charged over the behaviour of their players during their
west London derby defeat at QPR.

The Football Association also confirmed they had written to Blues manager Andre Villas-Boas asking for an explanation of his post-match comments about referee Chris Foy and his assistants.

Chelsea stand accused of surrounding Foy following Jose Bosingwa's sending off in the first half of their 1-0 loss at Loftus Road.

That decision also angered Villas-Boas, who admitted he was "very aggressive" with Foy after the final whistle, later accusing the official of being "card happy" and failing to treat both sides equally.

Villas-Boas stood by his comments today, insisting he had said nothing to warrant an FA charge.

The FA said in a statement: "The FA has today charged Chelsea with failure to ensure their players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion.

"This relates to an incident involving Chelsea players surrounding match official Chris Foy, immediately following Jose Bosingwa's dismissal.

"The incident occurred in their Premier League fixture against QPR at Loftus Road on Sunday 23 October.

"Separately, the FA has written to Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas and asked for an explanation on his post-match media comments.

"Villas-Boas has been asked to explain his comments on match official Chris Foy and the assistant referees.

"On both counts, the club has until Friday 28 October to respond."

PA