FA charge for Martin Skrtel after David De Gea clash

The FA has charged Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel with violent conduct following his clash with Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea during Sunday’s Premier League match.

Skrtel appeared to step on the Spaniard in the 95th minute of the match at Anfield, which Liverpool lost 2-1.

The FA said in a statement the incident was not seen by the officials, but was caught on video.

The Slovakian has until 6pm tonight to respond to the charge.

If he were found guilty Skrtel would face a three-match ban, ruling him out of the Premier League matches against Arsenal and Newcastle and the FA Cup quarter-final replay at Blackburn.

Meanwhile, Skrtel’s Liverpool team-mate Simon Mignolet has called for the players to use Sunday’s defeat — a first reversal since a 3-0 loss at Old Trafford in December — as motivation for a renewed top-four push.

“There’s still a lot to play for and when we come back from international duty, we’ve got that big game against Arsenal,” Mignolet said.

“The game away to Manchester United at Old Trafford we used as a catalyst to put in a lot of good performances — so let’s use this game as a catalyst again when we come back. Hopefully we can come back and get a run going again like we did after that Old Trafford game.”