The "offences" took place in the 5-3 win over Charlton, a thrilling and fairly-fought match which some might have though to have been a great advertisement for the English game. Some might have thought the ref deserved credit for a match played in good spirit and in which he didn't raise his visibility unnecessarily. But no, Vieira and Silvinho took their shirts off briefly in accepting the acclaim of their own fans, and the ref, having missed the chance to get himself in the headlines, must be punished.

Never mind 3 sendings off in our previous match with Liverpool, all 3 of which were almost universally regarded as ridiculous, and one of which their own advisory panel recommended be rescinded. Never mind Graham Stuart's cheeky but provocative wave at the Arsenal fans in celebrating after he scored Charlton's 3rd goal the same night. No, what matters is whether players show their vests and/or chests to their own fans in a moment of celebration. My god it's almost as if they're enjoying themselves!

What's really sad is that, coming from the FA, this isn't all that surprising. The one saving grace is that, so far, there's no talk of extending Vieira's ban retrospectively in light of the one he got away with.