Rooney likely to escape sanction

Soccer:Referee Mark Clattenburg's explanation of why he awarded Wigan a free-kick following Wayne Rooney's clash with James McCarthy yesterday will determine whether the Manchester United striker ends up facing a three-match ban.Latics boss Roberto Martinez was incensed by the sight of Rooney smacking his elbow into the back of the young Irish international's head.

He sought out Clattenburg for an explanation at half-time and the official told Martinez he felt there had been “a coming together”, something he appeared to indicate through hand gestures at the time.

That cut little ice with the Wigan manager, who felt the decision was straightforward, a view endorsed by Match of the Day duo Alan Hansen and Mark Lawrenson when they analysed the incident last night.

The only obvious way round this for Clattenburg when he sends in his official match report would be to state he saw the clash, but not the elbow. Even then, the FA would be within their rights to ask exactly why he gave the free-kick considering, without the elbow incident, McCarthy had moved towards Rooney rather than the other way round.

If Clattenburg says he saw the entire clash fully, Rooney will escape sanction, although a three-match ban could see him miss this week’s Premier League games with Chelsea and Liverpool, plus the FA Cup sixth round tie against either Arsenal or Leyton Orient.

Alex Ferguson’s initial reaction was to steel himself for a media backlash, which duly arrived from Hansen and Lawrenson.

“Every picture tells a story and sometimes you can’t defend the indefensible,” Lawrenson said.

And Hansen added: “He (Rooney) is in big trouble. You can’t argue with the pictures. There is some conjecture about whether the referee saw the incident or not. Is he looking at the ball? Categorically, he is not looking at the incident. He is looking at the ball.

“McCarthy takes a step to his left to try and block Wayne. He (Rooney) swings the elbow. He has thrown the elbow, smacked him on the head and should have been off.”

Should Clattenburg leave the FA free to launch a charge, which under the new fast-track process could be dealt with before kick-off against Chelsea even if United opt to appeal, United are bound to raise accusations of double standards.

Although Newcastle’s Mike Williamson was charged with violent conduct following a clash with Johan Elmander at St James’ Park earlier this season, there are other instances of players not being hauled over the coals.

Nigel de Jong and Liam Ridgewell — coincidentally for a tackle on McCarthy — both escaped further sanction for bad challenges during 2010, whilst Steven Gerrard got away with flicking a ‘V’ sign towards Andre Marriner at Wigan last term.

Ferguson ripped into Michael Ballack when the German elbowed Patrice Evra during the 2009 Community Shield at Wembley, but again the incident was not punished further.