Arsenal loanee Miguel Azeez has been charged by the FA for an incident on his Wigan Athletic debut against Cardiff City.

Miguel Azeez with Wigan Athletic (Photo via Azeez on Instagram)
Miguel Azeez with Wigan Athletic (Photo via Azeez on Instagram)

The FA announced on Thursday that Miguel Azeez had been charged following the EFL Championship game between Wigan Athletic and Cardiff City on Saturday, 14th January 2023.

The charge was for improper conduct during an incident on the pitch in the 96th minute, and the FA have given Azeez until Monday, 23rd January 2023 to respond.

The offending incident seemingly took place during Wigan’s goal celebrations, with the team having scored a late injury-time equaliser.

Azeez celebrated with his teammates, before noticing a flare thrown onto the pitch by a Wigan fan. The Arsenal loanee picked it up, held it aloft, and then threw it to the floor a metre or so away.

Though the flare didn’t hit anyone, or go particularly near anyone, this is presumably the incident the FA are referring to.

Miguel Azeez (2L) and the Arsenal u23s celebrate his goal against Ebbsfleet United (Photo by Dan Critchlow)
Miguel Azeez (2L) and the Arsenal u23s celebrate his goal against Ebbsfleet United (Photo by Dan Critchlow)

Arsenal have been charged by the FA over a number of incidents recently, and it seems Azeez will be the latest player to receive a punishment.

Wigan Today report that Azeez could face a ban, and Richarlison was banned for one game after throwing a flare into the crowd, but other players involved in similar incidents in the past have escaped sanctions.

A common-sense view of the issue would suggest that since Azeez didn’t actually throw his flare towards anyone, it wasn’t as serious as Richarlison’s incident and doesn’t deserve any more than a warning.