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 dismissed for what was perceived to be a last-man foul on former Reds teammate Harry Wilson just 17 minutes into the contest. Fulham were already leading thanks to an earlier strike, giving Liverpool an uphill battle, but they managed to salvage a point in the 2-2 game.
The Premier League Match Centre confirmed exactly why Robertson was given his marching orders: “The referee issued a red card to Robertson for a foul on Wilson which denied a goal scoring opportunity. VAR checked to confirm the red card and that Wilson was in an onside position.”
Rules on red card-related suspensions are different depending on the offence. Only violent conduct or serious foul play carries an automatic three-game ban, with denying a goalscoring opportunity considered a less severe one-game punishment.
Red card suspensions are applicable across all domestic competitions. That means Robertson will serve his ban during Liverpool’s Carabao Cup quarter-final against Southampton and be eligible for selection once more by the time the club’s Premier League schedule resumes on Sunday.
Had Robertson 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 in the Carabao Cup but would have had to miss one Premier League fixture instead.
Arne Slot will not be able to call on Robertson for the trip to Southampton. Ordinarily, it might not have been such a blow in a lower-key game, but with Kostas Tsimikas and Conor Bradley out injured, Liverpool were already in danger of threadbare defensively. Centre-back Ibrahima Konate is also currently absent, leaving no spare first-team defenders available.