Newcastle United winger Anthony Gordon has issued an apology to Virgil van Dijk after his reckless tackle during Liverpool's thrilling 3-2 victory. The ex-Everton star received a straight red card in the opening period as the Reds threw away a two-goal advantage before requiring 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha to clinch victory deep into added time.
Just before the interval, Gordon handed the initiative to the away side as he flew into the Liverpool skipper, leaving the Netherlands international sprawled on the turf clutching his calf.
Referee Simon Hooper initially brandished a yellow card for the incident but was advised to consult the VAR screen and reversed his original ruling.
At that stage, Liverpool were forced to dig deep to withstand the relentless pressure from Eddie Howe's team before Ryan Gravenberch opened the scoring against the flow of the match.
Gordon will now miss Newcastle's next three fixtures during a crucial spell for the Magpies. The club have already failed to secure attacking targets, seen an offer turned down for Jacob Strand Larsen, encountered setbacks in pursuing Yoane Wissa and left record purchase Alexander Isak sidelined following his tense transfer dispute.
They will now be deprived of their backup option to Isak whilst searching the transfer market for forward reinforcements, and following the heartbreaking loss, Gordon took to Instagram to express his regret.
"I want to sincerely apologise to my teammates and the fans," the statement began. "My intentions were pure. I was just trying to create energy in the game and I mistimed the tackle. I also want to apologise to Virgil, I would never intend to tackle somebody like this on purpose. We spoke after and he knows that.
"More importantly, I'm so proud of the time I spent on the pitch and how we played tonight. The atmosphere from you all is what makes SJP (St James' Park) so special. I love everything we stand for as a club and no more than right now. I'll be back and better, the same as every other setback I've ever faced. See you soon."
Liverpool capitalised against the 10-man Magpies as Hugo Ekitike, who faced boos after rejecting a summer transfer to join the Reds instead, netted his third goal in three matches to maintain his brilliant form.
Yet the Reds' defensive weaknesses returned to plague them once more as they surrendered a two-goal advantage. Milos Kerkez was caught napping at the far post, enabling Bruno Guimaraes to rise above him and nod home to narrow the deficit.
Then in the dying moments, replacement William Osula pounced on a lengthy free-kick that was misjudged by Ibrahima Konate, permitting the striker to burst through and blast past Alisson. Liverpool were forced to endure a final onslaught from their hosts, but in the 10th minute of added time, Ngumoha crowned his Premier League debut in magnificent fashion.