Former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin has admitted that he is in a "state of shock" after the Football Association decided not to take retrospective action against Burnley's Ashley Barnes.
The 25-year-old has been at the centre of controversy after he committed a dangerous tackle on Nemanja Matic during his side's 1-1 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
Despite the severity of the challenge, Barnes went unpunished on the field and referee Martin Atkinson instead sent off Matic for his angry reaction to the tackle.
After it was confirmed that Barnes would not face retrospective action, Nevin wrote on Chelsea's official website: "I am currently in a state of shock that we now find Nemanja is expected to serve a three-match ban while his assailant is to get off scot free.
"The statement and ruling from the FA was beyond belief for someone who has played the game. For a shove to illicit three games and a potentially career-damaging 'tackle' to get not so much as a slap on the wrist shows a broken system, or a deliberately warped system, and it also shows a gross unfairness that seems to regularly affect Chelsea more than anyone else."
The FA stated that because the referee had seen the incident, a suspension cannot be enforced.
Danielle Joynson
