Striker admits biting, scores two v Watford, gets 8-game ban- view detail.
After acknowledging to a biting allegation, Milutin Osmajic of Preston was given an eight-game ban. Watford head coach Tom
Cleverley said he was taken aback to see the striker play at Deepdale on Wednesday night.
On Monday, Osmajic acknowledged his guilt; nevertheless, the FA did not impose the eight-game ban on him until this Friday.
After the match against Blackburn on September 22, when Osmajic acknowledged biting Rovers’ Owen Beck, the Montenegrin
international began and scored twice against the Hornets in their 3-0 victory. He also played the final 22 minutes of their defeat at
Millwall.
In addition to being suspended until November 23 from North End, the striker will also pay a £15,000 fine.
Preston’s club statement hinted at the possibility of an appeal, saying they would not comment further until the written reasons are released.
Rather than discussing the situation last night, Cleverley did so this morning.
He emphasized, “We have our own problems to address from that game, and I didn’t want to get caught up in that on Wednesday
because it was absolutely not the reason why we lost.”
And I told the players that when it comes to dealing with issues or subpar performances, I will always start with myself.
“And I did. I had my own internal review of everything around Wednesday.
“But that aside, it is a strange situation for such a serious incident and for a guilty plea, and yet the player to still play.
“It’s part of a process, and I understand the FA has to go through that process if something isn’t picked up in the 90 minutes.
“It needs to be reviewed and investigated, but you would think those processes would go a little faster with such a serious incident.”
Preston may have known that Osmajic would be out for some time following the match against Watford because he hadn’t started a league game prior to Wednesday.
Cleverley said, “I was taken aback by the player’s performance.”
“It’s not my fault that Paul Heckingbottom chose him. You choose the available player who is one of their better players.But if he had
done something during the Wednesday night game, it would have been far more severe for such a significant incident to occur, for the
player to acknowledge it, and for him to still be available for selection.
The match between Watford and Middlesbrough is scheduled for tomorrow, and ironically, referee Mat Donohue, who officiated the
Preston/Blackburn match and saw the biting incident, is scheduled to start that match.
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