MANCHESTER, England (AP):

Manchester City will contest Emmanuel Adebayor's improper conduct charge resulting from the striker's goal celebration against former club Arsenal.

Adebayor ran the length of the field towards Gunners fans, who reacted violently and had to be kept under control by police and stewards in last Saturday's match.

"He didn't leave the field of the play. He laid on his knees - it was his normal celebration," City manager Mark Hughes said yesterday as he confirmed City's decision to contest the charge.

Adebayor has already been banned for three matches after stomping on former Arsenal teammate Robin van Persie in the 4-2 victory and risks a further ban if the Football Association doesn't accept City's defence on the celebration.

criticism

"It's important you don't take the emotion out of the game," Hughes said. "The circumstances of the game and the amount of criticism and vitriol that Ade had to take wasn't nice. It was a difficult situation - the first time he had come up against former teammates. Some of those teammates prior to the game felt they couldn't even shake his hand.

"All of these things maybe come together and affect somebody's emotional state in the game and I just think the celebration was an outpouring of that."