Mitrović just ninth! The longest bans in Premier League history 🟥 | OneFootball

Aleksandar Mitrović has been banned for eight games following his run-in with referee Chris Kavanagh in Fulham’s FA Cup defeat, and the FA want it to be even longer.

An independent commission announced its decision — three games for the red card the striker was shown, three games for violent conduct, and two more games for “improper, abusive, insulting and threatening” language — before the FA said on Tuesday they will be appealing the suspension as they do not feel the book was thrown hard enough.

Do they have a point? Here’s a look at the longest bans in Premier League history …

Eight games – Luis Suárez

In December 2011, then-Liverpool striker Luis Suárez was handed an eight-game ban and fined £40,000 after he was found guilty of aiming racist abuse at Manchester United defender Patrice Evra.

Liverpool seriously considered appealing the suspension before finally accepting it …

10 games – Luis Suárez

… little over a year later, Suárez faced a 10-game ban after biting Branislav Ivanović in a league game against Chelsea.

The ban spanned across two seasons, with Liverpool saying they were “shocked and disappointed” with the decision.

It was the second of three times in his career Suárez was suspended for biting an opponent.

10 games – David Prutton

The first of two examples that may lead the FA to believe there is a precedent for a longer ban for Mitrović, Southampton’s Prutton pushed referee Alan Wiley as he looked to argue with the linesman, who had suggested he be shown a red card for a challenge on Arsenal’s Robin van Persie.

Van Persie was sent off but Prutton was handed a lengthy ban deemed “extremely harsh” by the PFA as they said there was no intent from Prutton to push the referee.

11 games – Paolo Di Canio

The Premier League’s most infamous player-on-referee incident, Di Canio pushed referee Paul Alcock after he had shown him a red card (in another game against Arsenal) back in 1998.

Six months – Kolo Touré

We go from games to months now with Kolo Touré. Banned for failing a drugs test, Touré took diet pills (given to him by his wife) back in 2011 but they contained a banned substance.

A two-year ban had been rumoured so, all in all, it could have been much worse.

Seven months – Adrian Mutu

After a failed drugs test saw Mutu test positive for cocaine, Chelsea sacked the striker.

The ban landed in October 2004 and also saw Mutu pay a £20,000 fine.

Eight months – Rio Ferdinand

It wasn’t a failed drugs test but a forgotten one that saw Rio Ferdinand banned in 2003. The Manchester United defender, the most expensive British player in history at the time, forgot about a test before arriving to be told it was too late.

A later test saw the centre-back pass but the FA had charged him and he had to serve an eight-month ban and pay a £50,000 fine. The ban saw him miss Euro 2004.

Nine months – Mark Bosnich

In September 2002, Mark Bosnich did attend a drugs test … but failed it.

Having tested positive for cocaine, the goalkeeper was released by Chelsea and handed a nine-month ban.

Nine months – Eric Cantona

The most infamous ban in the history of English football, Eric Cantona’s kung-fu kick on a fan at Selhurst Park led to a nine-month suspension.

And who can blame the FA for that?