Chelsea fined by FA for Aston Villa bottle throwing incident | OneFootball

Chelsea have been fined £150,000 by the Football Association following an incident in which a bottle was thrown towards the Aston Villa technical area after a Premier League match at Stamford Bridge in December, BBC Sport has reported.

The punishment relates to events at the final whistle of Villa’s dramatic 2-1 comeback victory, sealed by two late goals from Ollie Watkins. As celebrations unfolded on the away bench, a plastic water bottle was thrown from the vicinity of Chelsea’s technical area, prompting an FA charge for misconduct.

Chelsea accepted a breach of FA Rule E20.1, having failed to ensure that players or club staff behaved appropriately in the immediate aftermath of the match. An independent regulatory commission imposed the fine following a hearing earlier this month.

In its written reasons, the commission described the act as “dangerous”, noting that it had the potential to provoke a reaction and escalate an already tense situation. Footage of the incident was provided to the FA as part of the investigation.

However, despite inquiries by both the governing body and the club, the individual responsible could not be identified. That failure did not prevent the commission from holding Chelsea collectively accountable for standards of conduct around the technical area.

The decision remains subject to appeal, but the ruling serves as a reminder of the strict responsibilities placed on clubs to maintain order and professionalism, particularly in emotionally charged moments at the conclusion of matches.

GFN | Finn Entwistle