Nzonzi handed three-match ban

Blackburn midfielder Steven Nzonzi has been banned for three matches after accepting a Football Association charge of violent conduct.

The 22-year-old Frenchman appeared to catch Stoke's Ryan Shawcross in the face with an elbow in the ninth minute of Rovers' 3-1 defeat at the Britannia Stadium on Saturday.

Referee Mark Halsey did not see the incident at the time but it was caught on video and that prompted the charge.

Copyright (c) PA Sport 2011, All Rights Reserved.