Diego Costa Charged by FA for Alleged Emre Can Stamp: Latest Details, Reaction

Diego Costa has been charged by the FA after appearing to stamp on Emre Can during Chelsea's Capital One Cup second-leg against Liverpool.

Continue for updates.

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Costa Speaks About Stamping Incident 

Saturday, Jan. 31

Jason Burt of the Telegraph provided comments from Costa, who spoke about the incident and his punishment:

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As far as what happened on Tuesday, the main thing is when I get home I can go home and I can go to sleep knowing that I’ve not done anything wrong, because I never meant to do that and it was not on purpose,” he explains.

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And you can clearly see that on the video. But it is a suspension. I have to accept that, I have to take it. Obviously I feel sad because I’m not going to be able to help the team, to play. But I have accept it and respect it.

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I’m not saying I’m an angel. I’m no angel. You can see that. But every time I play I will play the same way because that’s the way I am. That’s what I need to do in order to support my family. That’s my bread and butter, also that’s what I need to do for this club and for the fans of this club, for the supporters and for all the people involved in this club.

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Mourinho Cancels Press Conference Following Costa Charge

Thursday, Jan. 29

Ben Smith of the BBC reported that Jose Mourinho has cancelled his Friday press conference following Diego Costa's charge for violent conduct.

Sam Wallace of The Independent is reporting that Chelsea is contesting the charge.

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Costa Charged With Violent Conduct

Wednesday, Jan. 28

Diego Costa has not escaped an FA charge for appearing to stamp on Liverpool's Emre Can during Chelsea's 1-0 Capital One Cup semi-final second-leg win, per BBC Sport reporter Phil McNulty. The FA announced the decision on Wednesday:  

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Diego Costa has been charged by The FA for violent conduct following an on-field incident which was not seen by the match officials but caught on video.

The player has until 6pm on Thursday 29 January 2015 to respond to the charge.

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Guardian Sport on Twitter provided an image of the incident:

The Spanish international striker now faces the prospect of a three-match ban, according to Liverpool Echo reporter Ian Doyle, which would rule him out of Chelsea's title showdown with Manchester City on Saturday.

The final punishment will ultimately rest with referee Michael Oliver. He missed the altercation in live action, but Oliver will be consulted about any appropriate retrospective action, according to Sky Sports.

The FA deemed Costa's actions to be deliberate, a ruling that endorses the initial view of the incident given by Sky Sports pundit Thierry Henry.

The former Arsenal striker was unequivocal in his judgement of Costa's actions during Sky Sports' broadcast (h/t SkySports.com) of Chelsea's 1-0 win after extra time at Stamford Bridge. Henry was quick to condemn Costa: "You can see clearly that he meant that."

Henry's views were in stark contrast to Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho. He immediately defended his free-scoring talisman, claiming Costa's actions were "absolutely accidental," per BBC Sport.

Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

In fact, the Blues gaffer went on to claim the backlash against Costa was part of a campaign led by a certain TV pundit the Portuguese coach declined to name: "There is a campaign on the television with a certain pundit that is saying Diego Costa 'crimes.' This guy must be nuts."

An ESPN FC report identifies Sky's Jamie Redknapp as the target of Mourinho's latest verbal salvo. Mourinho simply maintained his view Costa had not meant to attack Can.

Mourinho ought to be a little more selective with the word "campaign." He has incurred a £25,000 fine for previously claiming referees had a campaign against his team, per London Evening Standard writer Sam Wallace. Now he's made the media a culprit.

But while Chelsea's verbose chief may be seeing conspiracies everywhere these days, there's no doubt Costa has the proverbial "edge" to his game. That's something Reds chief Brendan Rodgers noted in the aftermath, per Liverpool Echo writer Neil Jones.

It may even be a polite description for a player once dubbed "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Costa" in Spain because of his fiery temper, per Marca (h/t Sid Lowe of The Guardian). He has brought both the good and the bad of his game to Chelsea.

The latter was sadly frequently on display as he engaged in more than one distasteful incident against Liverpool, per McNulty:

Now Costa's actions could be set to leave Chelsea short in key matches during the club's bid to win a first Premier League title since 2010. If he's found guilty, the prolific 26-year-old would first miss the crunch top-of the-table tilt with second-placed reigning champions City. That's a potential title decider.

Costa would also be absent for the tricky looking away trip to Aston Villa, followed by a home clash with Everton.

Missing the striker who's bagged 17 league goals this season, per WhoScored.com, would have to rate as a major blow even for a squad as deep and talented as the current Chelsea vintage.