Warnock cleared, Downes charged

Reading and Sheffield United have been charged with failing to control their players and/or officials after incidents during …

Reading and Sheffield United have been charged with failing to control their players and/or officials after incidents during Saturday's Premiership fixture.

Reading coach Wally Downes has been charged with improper conduct. Sheffield United manager Neil Warnock, who angered Downes with a stamping gesture which was apparently mis-interpreted, has been warned but will not face formal disciplinary action.

But United winger Keith Gillespie faces up to two months on the sidelines after admitting to a charge of violent conduct earlier today.

Reading, Sheffield United and Downes have until February 7th to respond to the charges.

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Gillespie will have a personal hearing with a disciplinary commission on Tuesday. Yesterday he was charged by the FA in relation to an incident with Reading midfielder Stephen Hunt during United's 3-1 defeat at the Madejski Stadium.

Gillespie had already been dismissed moments earlier by referee Mark Halsey for elbowing Hunt just seconds after his arrival as a substitute. As the former Northern Ireland winger made his way off the pitch, he again confronted Hunt and appeared to hit him in the face.

In accepting the charge, and ahead of his disciplinary hearing, Gillespie faces the prospect of a six-match suspension which would see him ruled out until the end of March.

Gillespie is already banned for United's next three matches for the initial red card and misses next Tuesday's home date with Fulham, the match at Blackburn on February 3rd and the Bramall Lane clash with Spurs a week later.

The FA have the power to impose a further three-match penalty on the 31-year-old for the second infringement, which would see him miss games at Liverpool and Chelsea on February 24th and March 17th respectively, sandwiched by a home date with Everton on March 3rd.