Rival player to miss Sunderland clash after being handed second four-match ban of season
The Norwich City stalwart will not be available to face Sunderland on December 21st
Norwich City captain Kenny McLean will miss the Canaries’ clash with Sunderland later this month after being handed a four-match ban for violent conduct.
The Scot will be sidelined until after Christmas following an incident in the 24th minute of Norwich’s 3-0 defeat to QPR last Saturday. The midfielder seemingly caught opposition winger Kieran Morgan in the face with a trailing arm during an off-the-ball tangle which was not spotted by match officials at the time.
Following analysis of video replays, however, the FA have taken the decision to suspend McLean - ruling him out of Norwich’s trip to the Stadium of Light on December 21st. A statement from the governing body reads: “An independent regulatory commission has suspended Norwich City’s Kenny McLean for four matches following violent conduct in their EFL Championship match against Queens Park Rangers on Saturday, December 7. The midfielder’s behaviour during the 24th minute of the game wasn’t seen by the match officials at the time, but it was caught on camera, and The FA subsequently alleged that it constitutes violent conduct.
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“Kenny McLean denied this charge against him and submitted that the automatic penalty is excessive if found proven. The independent regulatory commission found it to be proven and imposed his sanction following a hearing. Its written reasons will be published in due course. The sanction is four matches rather than three as it is Kenny McLean’s second dismissal this season.”
Interestingly, McLean’s ban was handed down to him just five hours before Norwich were due to take on Portsmouth in the Championship on Tuesday, forcing Canaries boss Johannes Hoff Thorup into a late personnel change.
Addressing the decision, the Dane said: “I’m very surprised as it opens up the opportunity for a completely different competition. I’m looking forward to Sunday and the team we prepare and play against will be completely different with possible suspensions.
“The FA have opened the door to make decisions and even present the news on game days to the team. It is a completely new world for us. I can’t go into detail because Big Brother is watching but it is impressive we came away with a suspension. It doesn’t give away too much to say Kenny was part of our preparations but at 15:00 GMT we had to change our line-up. That is apparently how it is. It isn’t what I’m used to and there is nothing else I can do but accept it. But it is a surprise to everyone working in professional football.”
McLean’s four-match ban will be his second of the campaign so far. The 32-year-old was given an initial three-game suspension back in October following a straight red card for a reckless challenge on Middlesbrough midfelder Hayden Hackney, but was then hit with an additional one-game punishment when found guilty of using "abusive and/or insulting words" towards a match official following his dismissal.