Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has received a four-match suspension after the FA deemed his appeal against a violent conduct charge 'frivolous'.

More Stories

• Police arrest 'bottle thrower'
• Rooney sends United through

The governing body took a dim view of Ferdinand appealing the ban and added another game to the automatic three-match suspension.

"The Independent Commission felt that the player's claim against the charge was frivolous and on that basis have awarded an additional one-match ban upon the statutory three-match ban awarded for violent conduct," the FA said in a statement.

The appeal allowed him to feature for United in the Carling Cup semi-final second leg against Manchester City, a match they won 3-1 on the night to advance by a goal on aggregate.

He will miss the Premier League encounters with Arsenal - on Sunday - Portsmouth, Aston Villa and Everton. However, he will be available for the Carling Cup final against Villa on February 28.

The chances of him getting off with the charge were slim, given the clear nature of his attack on Craig Fagan during Saturday's 4-0 win over Hull.

As the ball was not even in the penalty area at the time of the incident and referee Steve Bennett did not see the incident, Ferdinand's only defence could be that he acted instinctively in response to foul play from Fagan.