Liverpool midfielder Fabinho SHOULD have been sent off for his horror tackle during the Reds' FA Cup exit to Brighton.
Referees’ bosses have now clarified the decision when Fabinho escaped with a yellow card for his challenge on Seagulls striker Evan Ferguson.
The PGMOL - the Professional Game Match Officials Board - have made it clear that the tackle warranted a VAR intervention and potential red card. Referee David Coote only booked Fabinho while VAR Neil Swarbrick also did not intervene during the FA Cup tie on Sunday.
Ferguson limped off in real pain and Brighton are anxiously waiting to discover whether severe damage has been done to his Achilles following Fabinho’s challenge.
It was felt that while the challenge was relatively low intensity, there was full contact with studs up from behind. The PGMOL felt therefore it should have gone to a VAR review and there is a feeling that those challenges should now result in a red card.
It is a major let-off for Fabinho and also Liverpool because the Brazil midfielder would have received a three game ban for serious foul play had he been sent off.
Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi excused Fabinho after the tackle and said it was an “accident.” De Zerbi said after the game: “I don’t like to speak about this. About this foul I don’t want to talk about it more.
“Fabinho I am sure is an honest player and a correct player. But on the pitch it can happen, this foul, this accident. Is Ferguson OK? No. We will see.
“The injury, we don’t know yet, but we will see in the next days, and we hope for him and for the club that it will not be such an important injury.”
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said: “There was no dynamic in it. I just saw it once, not a second time. With dynamic movement, we can talk about a red card, but Fabinho was more lying down, then he hit Ferguson]. Not cool.”
Brighton players were also aggrieved when Ibrahima Konate appeared to foul Alexis Mac Allister while he was through on goal. The Seagulls didn't let that injustice get to them however, scoring an injury-time winner to dump the holders out of the competition.
Klopp's side had reached the fourth round by virtue of a highly contentious clash with Wolves. Julen Lopetegui was left enraged after the 2-2 draw at Anfield, when Wolves were denied a late winner due to a VAR malfunction.
On that occasion, Toti Gomes thought he had scored the visitors' third goal, only for the offside flag to go up on the far side. But due to officials in Stockley Park not having the correct angle, VAR was unable to determine whether the borderline decision was the correct one.
The Wolves boss subsequently held face-to-face meetings with recently appointed PGMOL chief Howard Webb to voice his frustration at what he felt was rough treatment from referees since his arrival in English football.
