The Football Association confirmed Monday that they are considering disciplinary action against Newcastle manager Joe Kinnear, who called match official Martin Atkinson a "Mickey Mouse referee" following Sunday's 2-1 defeat to Fulham, dpa reported.
Kinnear was heavily critical of Atkinson's decision not to give Newcastle a free kick for a challenge between Fulham forward Andy Johnson and Newcatsle defender Claudio Cacapa, in the move that led to the penalty from which Fulham scored the winner.
"There was a blatant foul prior to the penalty, which the referee ignored," Kinnear said. "We were camped in their half. Cacapa was on the ball - and Johnson completely pushes him out the way, nicks the ball and gets the penalty.
"We've got the Mickey Mouse referee doing nothing. He's made an error that cost us. That's the standard of refereeing in this country. It happens week in, week out. There's always a smart answer like 'someone was obstructing my view.' You used to be able to have a bit of banter with referees, and they'd put their hands up if they make mistakes. Now they hide."