Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has been handed a further one-match ban and fined £100,000 after being charged by the FA with improper conduct after receiving his red card against Newcastle.
After fouling Alexander Isak, the Dutchman was brandished a straight red for denying a goalscoring opportunity. Van Dijk proceeded to argue with referee John Brooks and fourth official Craig Pawson as he left the pitch.
Darwin Nuñez had to come to Liverpool’s rescue with two late goals in a 2-1 win, a game in which Liverpool played with ten men for over an hour.
It means that the 32-year-old will miss Liverpool’s trip to Molineux to face Wolves in the Premier League next Saturday (16 September) after sitting out the Liverpool’s 3-0 home win over Aston Villa last Sunday.
An FA statement read: “The defender admitted that he acted in an improper manner and used abusive and insulting words towards a match official after being sent off in the 29th minute, and the sanctions were subsequently imposed by an independent regulatory commission.”
On the recently released ‘Match Officials: Mic’d Up’, Howard Webb agreed with the original red card decision.
“We see Virgil van Dijk does play the ball, but to get there he clearly kicks through the foot of Alexander Isak,” said Webb.
“It’s not only a free-kick but it also denies Isak an obvious goalscoring opportunity. He has to be sent off in this circumstance and the VAR checks it.”
