Johnny Evans will serve a six match suspension, and Papiss Cisse a seven match suspension, following the spitting incident at St James Park on March 4.

Cisse admitted to and apologised for his actions, while Evans maintains his innocence. However, following an analysis of video footage, Evans was deemed to have committed the offense.

A statement from the FA explained the difference in suspensions:

"Mr Cisse accepted the charge and his suspension consists of six matches, which is the standard penalty for this offence, with an additional one match as he has previously accepted a violent conduct charge this season."