The Football Association has opened an investigation into allegations that Milutin Osmajic bit Owen Beck during Preston’s draw with Blackburn on Saturday.

Osmajic, the Preston forward, appeared to bite the Blackburn defender on the back of the neck during a fracas that erupted after Beck kicked out at Duane Holmes in the final minutes of the goalless draw. Beck, on loan from Liverpool, was sent off and Osmajic was shown a yellow card.

Preston’s record signing faces a lengthy ban, however, if charged and found guilty of biting the 22-year-old. The former Liverpool striker Luis Suárez received a 10-match ban for biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic in 2013.

The FA has started its inquiries and is expected to contact the players involved and the two Lancashire clubs. Preston’s manager, Paul Heckingbottom, said after the game: “There’s no place for [biting]” and any such transgression by Osmajic would have to be dealt with.