Referee Darren Drysdale has been charged with improper conduct over his confrontation with Ipswich midfielder Alan Judge.
The 49-year-old Lincolnshire official appeared to square up to Judge and lean his head into the Ireland international after the midfielder's appeal for a penalty had been turned down in the closing stages of a League One match against Northampton on Tuesday night.
Drysdale apologised to both Judge and Ipswich for his actions on Wednesday afternoon but the FA has now charged him with breach of improper conduct.
An FA statement read: "Darren Drysdale has been charged with a breach of FA Rule E3 following last night's EFL League One game between Ipswich Town FC and Northampton Town FC.
"It is alleged that the match official's behaviour during the 90th minute of the game amounts to improper conduct and he has until Thursday, 4 March 2021 to provide a response."
"I fully understand that it is important for us as referees to maintain our composure throughout the game and always engage with players in a professional manner," Drysdale said in a statement released by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited.
"I'm sorry that I did not do that last night and I can only apologise to Alan and Ipswich Town."
Alan Judge tweeted about the incident and said that an apology was not necessary as "we all make mistakes" and things happen in football in the heat of the moment.
As I said in this 👇. There was no need for an apology. I wasn't looking for one or looking for any action to be taken. In football as everybody knows stuff happens in the heat of the moment in a game. We all make mistakes and for me that is the end of this https://t.co/ujQsF9lQ4N
— alan judge (@10judgey) February 17, 2021
Before Drysdale's statement was released, Ipswich manager Paul Lambert confirmed he had asked the EFL to investigate the confrontation.
Lambert told talkSPORT today: "I’ve texted Mike Jones (EFL head of referees) this morning to say have a look at the footage of the head thing.
"To me, in my opinion, it looks as if the referee went in there and I said to him after the game, 'Did you put your head in my player?’
"He couldn’t answer it and that’s the reason I spoke to Mike. I haven’t seen that in a long, long while."
