FA to probe Ball stamp on Ronaldo

The Football Association will investigate Michael Ball’s stamp on Cristiano Ronaldo tomorrow and a disciplinary hearing is likely to take place on Thursday.

FA disciplinary chiefs will view television footage of the incident during Saturday’s Manchester derby and the City defender looks certain to face a charge.

An apparent headbutt by Fulham’s Michael Brown on Liverpool’s Xabi Alonso will also be investigated tomorrow, it was confirmed today.

An FA spokesman said: “We will look at the television footage of the incidents tomorrow and ask the officials what action they would have taken had they seen the incidents, and any charges will be based on that.”

If charges are announced tomorrow, the players will have until Wednesday to respond and under the fast-track system a disciplinary hearing would take place on Thursday.

Officials from the FA’s compliance department will also have to decide whether the players should be charged with violent conduct or the more-serious offence of serious foul play.

That was the charge brought against Ben Thatcher earlier this season after his elbow assault on Portsmouth’s Pedro Mendes while the defender was playing for Manchester City. He was suspended for eight matches by the FA.