Liverpool defender Andy Robertson will be available for the weekend’s Premier League clash with Tottenham Hotspur despite a straight red card in Saturday’s draw against Fulham.
Robertson was fired for what was perceived as a last-man foul on former Reds team-mate Harry Wilson just 17 minutes into the game. Fulham were already leading thanks to an earlier strike, giving Liverpool an uphill battle, but they pulled through save a point in the 2-2 match.
Premier League Match Center confirmed exactly why Robertson was given his marching orders: “The referee red-carded Robertson for a foul on Wilson that denied a goal-scoring opportunity. The VAR checked to confirm the red card and that Wilson was in position.”
The rules on red card suspensions differ depending on the offence. Only violent conduct or serious foul play carries an automatic three-game suspension, and denying a scoring opportunity is considered a less severe one-game suspension.
Red card suspensions apply to all domestic competitions. It means Robertson will serve his ban during Liverpool’s Carabao Cup quarter-final against Southampton and will be eligible for selection once again when the club’s Premier League schedule resumes on Sunday.
If Robertson had been sent off for an accumulation of yellow cards, the rules are different. Yellow card suspensions are competition-specific, meaning the left-back would have been fine to play Carabao Cup but I would have had to lose one Premier League instead of that.
Arne Slot will not be able to call on Robertson for the trip to Southampton. Normally, it might not have been such a blow in a key game, but with Kostas Tsimikas and Conor Bradley out injured, Liverpool they were already in danger of defensive exhaustion. Center back Ibrahima Konate is also currently absent as there are no first team defenders available.
