Owen escapes FA punishment over ‘punch’

LONDON: Michael Owen will not face punishment for lashing out at Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta during Stoke City’s 1-0 loss at Arsenal, the Football Association confirmed on Monday.
The 33-year-old former England striker appeared to strike Arteta on the back after taking exception to a robust challenge by the Spaniard in the latter stages of Saturday’s game at the Emirates Stadium.
However, referee Chris Foy saw the incident and decided not to take action, which prevents the FA from punishing Owen retrospectively.
After the match, Stoke manager Tony Pulis said: “Arteta’s challenge was poor, but Michael should not do that.” Arteta revealed that the players had said sorry to each other at the end of the game.