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FA charges Luis Suarez over biting incident

Luis Suarez. Credit: PA

The Football Association has charged Liverpool striker Luis Suarez with violent conduct after he bit Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic.

The FA said in a statement: "The FA has charged Liverpool forward Luis Suarez with violent conduct. The charge follows an incident with Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic in yesterday’s fixture at Anfield [21 April 2013].

"The incident was not seen by the match officials and has therefore been retrospectively reviewed.

"It is alleged that the conduct of Suarez constitutes violent conduct and it is The FA’s contention that the standard punishment of three matches that would otherwise apply is clearly insufficient in these circumstances.

"Suarez has until 6pm on Tuesday 23 April to respond to the charge, thereafter an Independent Regulatory Commission will be convened this Wednesday, 24 April."

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Friedel: Liverpool won't want to get rid of best player

Former Liverpool goalkeeper Brad Friedel has said he believes Suarez will remain at the club because of his talent and price tag:

Liverpool won't want to get rid of their best player ...

The owners will not be happy with what they're seeing but they're businessmen and they're not going to want to just get rid of £22million of investment.

They will try and work with him. He's an outstanding footballer but someone has got to try and get hold of him.

– Brad Friedel, Former Liverpool goalkeeper

Watch: Liverpool: We have to work with Suarez on his discipline

Report: Adidas to remind Suarez of standards it expects

Luis Suarez's multi-million pound sponsor Adidas has said it will "remind" the footballer of the standards it expects, according to a reporter for the Associated Press:

Robharris?size=bigger

Adidas on Suarez: "We will be reminding him of the standards we expect from our players. Luis has admitted his actions were unacceptable"

From @RobHarris on Twitter:

Read: Famous bites in sporting history

Luis Suarez fined by Liverpool over biting incident

Luis Suarez has admitted on Twitter that Liverpool fined him over the biting incident, adding that he requested that the money be donated to the Hillsborough Family Support Group.

Read: Liverpool manager: Owners to discuss Suarez 'bite'

Ivanovic 'doesn't want to press charges over bite'

Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic is understood to have spoken to Surrey Police about the incident at the club's training ground in Cobham.

Branislav Ivanovic Credit: John Walton/PA Archive/Press Association Images

Press Association reports that a complaint was made to Merseyside Police which was passed on to their Surrey colleagues, who wanted to ascertain whether he had sustained any injury.

That was found not to be the case and Ivanovic told police he did not want to press charges.

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Bookies favour Mourinho to replace Benitez

Labrokes favour former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho over Dortmund's Jurgen Klopp to replace Rafa Benitez:

William Hill offer 10/1 on Benitez to have left the club by noon today and 3/1 on an exit by 3pm on Saturday:

Club site plays down Benitez comments

A report on the official Chelsea website makes little mention of Rafa Benitez's angry tirade at fans last night.

The article plays down the incident, saying instead that the manger merely "expressed his wish for the fans to unite in creating a positive atmosphere":

In addition to considering the action on the pitch on Wednesday evening, Benitez expressed his wish for the fans to unite in creating a positive atmosphere for the team to play in at our games.

'It will be much better for everyone to have a good atmosphere and to back the players,' he said.

– chelseafc.com

Rafael Benitez reveals plan to leave Chelsea

Chelsea interim manager Rafael Benitez revealed during a press conference last night that he will stand down at the end of the season.

Speaking after Chelsea's 2-0 win against Middlesbrough, Benitez said he was "disappointed" with some fans who he described as "wasting time" making negative banners instead of supporting the club.

He also revealed that he did not expect the word "interim" to be added to his title when he signed his contract:

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