Liverpool's Ryan Gravenberch is free to play against Crystal Palace in the Community Shield this afternoon, despite receiving a red card ban in the final match of last season. But the Dutch midfielder was not spotted in the match-day squad at Wembley, per This Is Anfield. It remains to be seen if he will be involved later today. Gravenberch had his Premier League title celebrations dampened in May when he was shown a straight red card for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity against Palace.
At the time, Liverpool were trailing 1-0 and Gravenberch's decision to foul Daichi Kamada was ultimately vindicated as Mohamed Salah equalised to ensure a draw. Interestingly, Liverpool's first competitive match of the season will also be against Palace in the Community Shield at Wembley Stadium. Given that this is a competitive fixture, there have been questions about whether Gravenberch will be able to play for Liverpool today or if he will be serving a suspension.
However, the club has confirmed that the 23-year-old can face Palace due to a loophole in the suspension rules. Since the red card was issued in the Premier League, the ban will be served in that competition. This isn't always the case, though.
For more serious offences, the FA does have the power to extend the ban across all domestic competitions but that action has not been taken in this instance. While Gravenberch can play today, the ban does carry over into the new Premier League season which kicks off on Friday, August 15, at home to AFC Bournemouth.
Arne Slot will be unable to select the midfielder for that match, but Gravenberch will be back in contention on Monday, 25 August, for what could be a fiery clash against Newcastle United. Both clubs are currently entangled in a transfer drama involving Alexander Isak.