Ashley Cole, the Chelsea defender, has apologised for his studs-up tackle on Alan Hutton and for his subsequent poor behaviour towards referee Mike Riley during Wednesday night's clash against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane.

"I'd like to apologise to anyone I offended and of course Alan Hutton who I tackled," Cole said after watching both incidents on television. "I didn't mean to go in hard that way. It was high but I tried to read the ball and get the ball first, but he was a little bit too quick for me. It wasn't malicious and I'm a little disappointed with what people are saying, that I meant it. Of course it was a bad tackle at the time but in the heat of the moment you want to win the game and win every tackle, and as I said I'm sorry for Alan, but it was never meant."

Cole, who was lucky to escape with only a yellow card, also said sorry for berating referee Mike Riley and turning his back on him.

"I'm an emotional person, things can happen on the pitch very quickly but I didn't mean to disrespect the referee," he said. "I recognise this is a part of my game that I need to work on and control."

It is understood Cole will not face any further sanctions from the FA as Riley had the chance to deal with the situation there and chose not to punish him further.

Chelsea manager Avram Grant believes the fall-out from Cole's tackle highlights the double standards his club faces. The Israeli was referring to Gus Poyet, Spurs' assistant manager, who confronted Cole at half-time when he walked down the tunnel.

"I was angry that everyone jumped on him (Cole), including their bench," Grant said. "When we do these things people say we are not behaving right."

The Football Association (FA) have this week tried to encourage more respect for officials, and Chelsea have been guilty in the past of surrounding referees. Earlier this season the club were fined £40,000 for the poor conduct of their players in a league match at Derby.

However, Grant defended the behaviour of his players, insisting they do conduct themselves properly on the pitch.

"We give a lot of respect to the official, if you see our players they don't have a problem with these things," he said.

Cole's tackle was one of the main talking points of the thrilling 4-4 draw at White Hart Lane, with Riley put in the spotlight as well. The West Yorkshire official was only just back in middle following a weekend off after being criticised in Blackburn Rovers' draw with Fulham.

After the bad-tempered clash at White Hart Lane, Chelsea lost ground in the Premier League title race. Grant's men host Arsenal at the weekend when they have another chance of changing the look at the top of the table.

Joe Cole, the Chelsea midfielder, who scored twice against Spurs, believes there are more surprises to come.

"I'm sure there will be a lot of twists and turns in the title race," he said. "We need to keep plugging away. Arsenal and Manchester United have to come to Stamford Bridge and they play each other as well. There are going to be lots of opportunities for us to close the gap. No-one should be written off, it's anyone's title."