'By no means certain' - VAR expert gives take on Liverpool appeal over Alexis Mac Allister red card
Liverpool may struggle to convince the Football Association to overturn Alexis Mac Allister's red card from Saturday's game with Bournemouth, according to VAR expert Dale Johnson.
Mac Allister was dismissed less than an hour into his Anfield debut after a coming together with Bournemouth midfielder Ryan Christie resulted in the Argentine being given his marching orders by referee Thomas Bramall.
At the time, neither VAR referee Paul Tierney nor assistant Constantine Hatzidakis instructed Bramall to review the incident on the pitch-side monitor at Anfield. The outcome leaves Mac Allister set to miss the Reds' next three Premier League matches.
On Monday, though, the ECHO revealed Liverpool have lodged an appeal with the FA under 'wrongful dismissal' in the hope of having Mac Allister's red card retracted in time for Sunday's clash at Newcastle United.
Anfield Road latest as Liverpool plan swift response to avoid losing millions
Chelsea wait on Premier League to rubber-stamp £40m deal Liverpool have already beat
And even though the FA will now review evidence of the tackle through an independent regulatory commission, there is reason to believe it will be a tough ask for Liverpool to convince the chiefs of English football to overturn Mac Allister's dismissal.
Writing in his weekly ESPN column, Johnson said: "The Premier League has a more liberal approach to tackling compared to the other major leagues...[m]ore consideration is given to the level of force, rather than point of contact. Based upon that, we shouldn't be seeing a red card for tackle like Mac Allister's; even Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola agreed with his opposite number, Jurgen Klopp, that the midfielder shouldn't have been dismissed.
"Christie is trying
Read on liverpoolecho.co.uk
