Leeds United hit with FA charge after Barnsley incident and Jesse Marsch 'punches thrown' comments

Leeds have been charged with failing to conduct themselves in an orderly fashion by the Football Association following an altercation on Wednesday evening.

The Whites took on Barnsley in the Second Round of the Carabao Cup, winning 3-1 at Elland Road, however an incident in the second half has contravened the FA’s rules on player conduct.

A statement released on Friday evening read: “Leeds United FC and Barnsley FC have been charged with breaching FA Rule E20.1 during their EFL Cup tie on Wednesday [24/08/22].

"It is alleged that both clubs failed to ensure their players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion during the 67th minute, and they have until Thursday [01/09/22] to respond.”

The incident in question involved Leeds defender Cody Drameh and former United academy player Liam Kitching, now representing Barnsley.

With Leeds 3-1 up, the pair became involved in a tangle on the far side of the pitch as Kitching appeared to haul Drameh to the turf following an attempt made by the Leeds man to prevent a crossing opportunity.

Both players were yellow carded by referee John Brooks as several members of each team rushed to separate the pair.

The following day, head coach Jesse Marsch hosted a press conference at the club’s Thorp Arch training ground, expressing pride at his team’s response to the altercation.

"Loved it,” Marsch said of the incident. “And to be fair, they all stood up for each other but didn't cross the line, right? It's really important that everybody you know, has each other's back.

"Cody did nothing to deserve the reaction [from Kitching]. But Cody stood up for himself and the team stood up for him, but no punches were thrown, nothing stupid was done in the process. It was just a group showing total solidarity and commitment to each other.

"This kind of stuff for me is important and I know there's these mass confrontation and referees are trying to avoid all this, but for me, part of being a team is making sure you have each other's back, so I thought that was great.”

Leeds have until Thursday to respond to the FA charge.