Tottenham Hotspur's Mauricio Pochettino has become the first Premier League manager targeted by the Football Association's new disciplinary system for governing conduct on the touchline.
Pochettino is among a number of Football League coaches who received a Stage 1 warning in August, though the nature of the offence he committed during Tottenham's 3-1 win over Fulham at Wembley Stadium on Aug. 18 has not been disclosed.
Under the system introduced by the FA this season, managers and coaches who receive four Stage 1 warnings during a season will receive an automatic one-game touchline ban.
The punishments escalate in direct correlation to the number of warnings. Reaching eight Stage 1 warnings will result in a two-game touchline ban, 12 will trigger a three-game suspension and 16 would prompt a formal FA misconduct charge overseen by an independent regulatory commission.
Unlike the punishments for players accumulating yellow and red cards, there is no cut-off point in the season beyond which warnings are wiped out.
Stage 1 warnings are the managerial equivalent of bookable offences, and in the Football League, managers and coaches who violate the rules are shown a yellow card by the match official -- though this does not occur in the Premier League, which is partly why the exact infringement Pochettino committed remains unclear.
Offences that will be met with a Stage 1 warning include throwing or kicking objects, disrespectful gestures toward officials, provocative or inflammatory motions, gesturing for cards to be shown or the video assistant referee to be consulted, repeatedly leaving the technical area, entering an opponent's technical area and time wasting.
Sources told ESPN FC that the system was introduced by the FA after dialogue with Premier League and Football League clubs to provide greater clarity on what constitutes unacceptable conduct on the touchline and consistency of punishment for those who repeatedly violate the rules.
More serious touchline offences, such as violent conduct, aggressive behaviour, spitting or entering the field of play to confront match officials will still result in the manager or coach in question being sent from the dugout and charged with misconduct.