In September 2010 Bowyer was forced to apologise for verbally abusing a West Bromwich Albion supporter. The incident occurred following Bowyer's substitution after he had committed a rash challenge on Gabriel Tamaș. In the absence through injury of Craig Gardner, Bowyer returned to the starting eleven for the match against champions Chelsea in November 2010, and scored the only goal of the game to give his team a surprise victory, and then followed that up with a late equaliser against Manchester United. In January 2011, television replays highlighted incidents, unnoticed by the match referee, in which Bowyer stamped on Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna and appeared to rake his studs down the same player's Achilles. Suggestions in the media that Bowyer could receive a six-match ban prompted Birmingham manager Alex McLeish to argue that the football authorities were not treating all clubs equally when using television evidence. Bowyer received the standard three-match ban for violent conduct.