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Aston Villa was hit with another blow just 90 minutes before kick off of their Premier Legue match at Tottenham Hotspur today when it was revealed that defender Micah Richards was fined and suspended one match for an "incident" at halftime of last weekend's Swansea City match.
Micah Richards fined £10,000 and given one-match suspension after admitting charge https://t.co/cw9N3ikeFt pic.twitter.com/hy49EjfYvc
— The FA (@FA) November 2, 2015
Apparently Richards, Villa's captain, and Swansea's Federico Fernandez got into a bit of a dust-up in the tunnel at the halftime interval after some on-pitch incidents. Words were exchanged. Fisticuffs ensued. The tunnel was reportedly "shaking." The FA announced an investigation.
All that's fine, but what's really dumb-slash-hilarious about this is apparently Richards got word that he was fined £10,000 and will miss today's match... 90 minutes before kickoff.
Sure, this helps Tottenham a lot because it apparently led to the inclusion of the shambling corpse of Joleon Lescott in central defense, but 90 minutes before kick-off?!? More idiocy from the FA, if you ask me. Villa fans are rightfully furious, and I would be too if the situation was reversed.