Emmanuel Adebayor looks set to be handed a lengthy ban for the manner of his provocative celebration and for his vicious stamp on Robin van Persie in Manchester City's 4-2 victory over Arsenal.
The City striker scored late on against his old team and then turned and raced over 100 yards, avoiding his own team players, before sliding on his knees before the irate Arsenal fans at the far end of the pitch.
The very same fans he celebrated with last season.
Arsenal's fans then threw a multitude of foreign objects at their former striker as some rushed to try and get on the pitch.
Stewards had rushed into position after it had become obvious what Adebayor was trying to attempt and barely held back the furious throng.
One City steward needed medical attention after he was struck with a missile, believed to be a chair.
The City of Manchester police are also investigating the incident and are building a case through the use of CCTV footage in the hope of charging the Arsenal fans who threw the missiles onto the pitch, injuring the steward into the process.
Following the recent disgraceful scenes between fans after the Millwall/West Ham Carling Cup game, the FA are keen to come down heavily on players who incite the crowd.
What Adebayor did yesterday can only be described as pure incitement, considering he had so far to go to do it.
He was issued with a yellow card by the referee for the ugly incident, but the FA will most probably give him a two or three match ban after they investigate the celebration.
The situation could get worse for Adebayor, who will also be investigated by the game's governing body for his clash with Robin van Persie.
The Arsenal striker came in from behind the Togolese with a careless sliding tackle that might have seen the Dutch star receive a card, had it not been for the clash between the two distracting the referee.
The referee called for medical attention for Van Persie when he saw that the player was bleeding from a gash to his face.
But slow motion footage clearly shows Adebayor lashing out at Van Persie as he slid past.
The vicious attack on his ex-team mate soured the game which had been played out in a good manner by Adebayor and his former team mates.
Indeed, Adebayor even spent most of the warm-up before the match with his old friends as his new team ran through their paces.
Robin van Persie issued a statement after the game showing his bitter disappointment with his former friend and team mate:
“He set out to hurt me,” Van Persie said. “I have not received an apology from him. He had his own agenda today and that is bad for the game we all love.
“I feel lucky that I have not suffered a greater injury. The contact was only centimetres from my eye. I knew he was aiming for a collision because he changed the angle of his body to allow contact to be made. He moved backwards when his natural momentum would have taken him forward. I find that deeply disrespectful.”
Van Persie added: "He has shown a real lack of class today, to me and the fans."
Police and stewards had to be called in to restore order among the travelling fans after City striker’s goal celebration and the FA is likely to investigate the incident despite the player apologising for his behaviour.
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