Blackpool have confirmed that they have been fined £25,000 by the Premier League for fielding a weakened team against Aston Villa on 10th November.The disciplinary action has been taken as it is deemed that manager Ian Holloway breached Premier League rules B.13 and E.20 by making 10 changes to his line-up.
A ruling board is said to have considered the team fielded by Holloway against West Ham on 13th November and in following matches when making the decision.
A statement on the club's official website read: "Blackpool football club can confirm the Premier League board has found the club guilty of breaches of rules B.13 and E.20 in relation to the team fielded by the club in its fixture against Aston Villa on 10th November 2010."
Holloway was almost vindicated as his makeshift team were narrowly beaten 3-2 by Villa after a last-minute goal from James Collins.
Unrepentant
After the game Holloway was unrepentant about his team selection and threatened to resign if punished by the Premier League.
It remains to be seen if he will keep to his word, but he did later qualify that by saying he would only go if chairman Karl Oyston agreed it was in the club's best interest.
The Premier League also took into account comments from Holloway regarding his team selection for the FA Cup third round match against Southampton.
Blackpool now have two weeks to decide whether they will appeal against the ruling and resulting fine.
Earlier on Thursday, Blackpool confirmed the signing of Morocco international Salaheddine Sbai on a deal until the end of the season.
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