Diego Costa is facing a three-match ban for grappling with Laurent Koscielny during Chelsea's win over Arsenal on Saturday.

The striker appeared to claw at the Frenchman's face as they battled for the ball at Stamford Bridge.

The incident went unpunished but the Football Association have now charged the Spain international retrospectively with violent conduct.

Diego Costa appeared to strike Laurent Koscielny in the face as they grappled in the box during Chelsea's win

Costa had both hands on Koscielny's face at one point as their duel escalated

Koscielny tumbles to the ground after his heated confrontation with the Spain striker

Costa and Koscielny start their duel after the French defender had been knocked over

FA chiefs studied controversial referee Mike Dean's match report on the incident towards the end of the first half at Stamford Bridge before unanimously deciding to punish the Chelsea forward.

Costa was booked, but it was not been made clear whether it was for the incident with Koscielny or his exchange with Gabriel that led to the Arsenal defender's red card.

The Brazilian was followed down the runnel by midfield team-mate Santi Cazorla in the second half as he was given his marching orders following two yellow cards.

Gabriel has been charged with improper conduct for his behaviour following his dismissal, whilst team-mate Cazorla has been warned for his behaviour following his sending off. Both clubs have been charged with failing to control their players

Costa has until 6pm on Tuesday to respond while Gabriel and both clubs have until the same time on Thursday.

Chelsea went on to win the grudge match at Stamford Bridge 2-0 after goals from Kurt Zouma and Eden Hazard.

Costa also had an altercation with Gabriel as Chelsea breathed new life into their season with the victory

Costa appeared to lash out at both Koscielny and Gabriel which led to the latter being sent off

The Chelsea man grabbed Gabriel by the neck as he arrived to defend his team-mate

The Brazilian defender was left was clear scratch-marks on his neck, and both players were booked

Blues boss Jose Mourinho was seething when Costa was retrospectively sanctioned in February for treading on Liverpool's Emre Can, part of what the Chelsea boss perceived as a 'campaign' against his side which included a Sky Sports montage entitled 'Costa's Crimes'.

But Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said he hoped referee Dean would look again at Costa's actions before filing his match report.

'The match officials should have been aware of Costa's reputation during his first 14 months in the Barclays Premier League', Wenger said, but statistics show the striker did not commit a foul in the match.

Gabriel became involved after Costa grappled with Koscielny, pushing the defender in the face with his hands before catching him with a flailing arm.

And Zouma has since admitted Costa deliberately cheats.

He told BeIn Sport: 'No, we're not surprised because we know Diego. Everyone knows Diego and this guy likes to cheat a lot and put the opponent out of his game.

That happened in the game but he's a really nice guy. We're proud to have him, like the other players, and we're happy to win this.'

Referee Mike Dean pulls a red card for Gabriel as Arsenal collapsed at Stamford Bridge