Chelsea and Everton have been charged by the Football Association for failing to control their players, but Branislav Ivanovic has escaped further action for an incident involving James McCarthy.
A melee broke out between both sets of players in last night's 1-0 victory for Chelsea at Stamford Bridge when Gareth Barry was sent off for a second bookable offence.
During the scuffle, Ivanovic appeared to wrap his arm around McCarthy's neck and then moved his head towards his opponent, which prompted suggestions that the defender would face retrospective action.
However, the FA has released a statement, which read: "Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic will not face any further action in relation to an incident involving Everton's James McCarthy in the 86th minute.
"In Premier League matches, if an incident has not been seen by the match officials, a three-man panel of former elite referees will be asked by the FA to review it and advise what, if any, action they believe the match referee should have taken had it been witnessed at the time.
"For an FA charge to follow, all three panel members must agree it is a sending-off offence. In this instance, the panel did not believe the conduct was worthy of a dismissal."
Everton boss Roberto Martinez said after the game that he felt that Ivanovic should have been sent off, while Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho threatened to walk out of a press conference if he was asked any more questions about the Ivanovic incident.
Both clubs have until 6pm on February 17 to respond to the charge.
Danielle Joynson
