Liverpool has been given a new verdict on Andy Robertson's red card at Anfield this weekend with Dermot Gallagher explaining why he felt it was the wrong decision to send off the left-back during the Premier League clash against Fulham.
Robertson was sent off by on-field official Tony Harrington and after a lengthy VAR review, Stuart Attwell opted not to intervene. It means the Scotland captain will miss the midweek trip to Southampton in the Carabao Cup through suspension, though he will be back for the visit to Spurs next Sunday.
"I've had lots of time to look at this as you'd imagine in the last 48 hours," Gallagher said on Sky Sports. "I didn't think it was a red card at the time and I still don't.
"Robertson doesn't know he is coming and [Harry Wilson] nicks the ball. Is he in control of the ball? No. Is he going to gain control of the ball? Very, very doubtful, because the Liverpool player (Virgil van Dijk) will get there first. Is he moving towards goal? No.
"There's too many variables for me. The "O" (in DOGSO) stands for obvious and not possible. I think if the referee had whistled [immediately] rather than letting it run, it's a different decision... but Raul Jiminez has a shot and Van Dijk clears the ball. It adds a lot of complications to it but the more palatable decision would be a yellow card."
Liverpool.com says: While there is an argument that Robertson shouldn't have been sent off, the bigger controversy in the game should be the Andreas Pereira tackle on Ryan Gravenberch which should have been a red card before he scored. Issa Diop was fortunate to escape a red too when he clattered into Robertson early in the game.
Post-match, Van Dijk said the referee looked "nervous" and it wasn't the best performance from the officials. Liverpool didn't end up seeing its lead over Arsenal or Manchester City reduced this weekend as a result, but it was a good set of results for Chelsea who beat Brentford to move within four points of the Reds.