Virgil van Dijk CHARGED by the FA for his furious reaction for being sent off by John Brooks during Liverpool’s win over Newcastle, having appeared to call the decision a ‘f***ing joke’.
The Reds captain was furious at being red carded for his tackle on Newcastle forward Alexander Isak and has now been charged with a breach of FA rule E3.1. Van Dijk appeared to label his sending off as a ‘f****** joke’ at the time and now faces further punishment for his reaction to the incident.
The Dutchman could be sanctioned further in the aftermath of Sunday’s Premier League clash at St James’ Park and the governing body have now moved to charge Van Dijk.
A statement published by the FA on Tuesday read: Virgil van Dijk has been charged with a breach of FA rule E3.1 following Liverpool’s game against Newcastle United on Sunday, 27 August.
‘It’s alleged the defender acted in an improper manner and/or used abusive and/or insulting words towards a match official after being sent off in the 29th minute. ‘Virgil van Dijk has until Friday, 1 September to provide a response to this charge.’
The red card dished out by referee John Brooks initially meant the Liverpool skipper would serve a one-match ban for his foul that denied Isak a goalscoring opportunity. That could now be upgraded to a longer ban which would give Reds manager Jurgen Klopp a defensive headache to deal with.
The German was seen trying to calm Van Dijk down as he left the pitch as the 32-year-old staunchly protested his innocence before departing proceedings as Liverpool trailed. Van Dijk also appeared to exchange strong words with fourth official Craig Pawson.
The sending off was Van Dijk’s first for Liverpool since he arrived for a then world-record fee of £75m in 2017 from Southampton. A three-match ban would see him miss upcoming matches against Aston Villa, Wolves, and West Ham.
Trent Alexander-Arnold will captain Liverpool in Van Dijk’s absence with 20-year-old Jarell Amorin Quansah a likely replacement at the heart of defence.
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