Virgil van Dijk ban puts FA under pressure after Liverpool theories and inconsistency
One game wasn't enough. And now Virgil van Dijk will have to wait a little longer before pulling on the captain's armband again for Liverpool.
The Reds centre-back has been slapped with an additional one-game ban and a whopping £100,000 fine after admitting the FA charge of behaving in an "improper manner" towards referee John Brooks in the wake of his sending off at Newcastle United a fortnight ago.
It means the Dutchman will remain absent for Liverpool when they resume their Premier League campaign after the international break at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday week.
But is it right that Van Dijk has been censured in this way? And does he have any reason to be aggrieved? Our ECHO writers have their say...
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'Swearing isn't enough to be slapped with a mammoth fine'
Ian Doyle: The early-season clampdown on any sort of inconsiderate behaviour towards officials means there was never any chance of Virgil van Dijk not facing an FA charge.
And if that censure revolves around the Dutchman being angrily potty-mouthed, then the Liverpool skipper is bang to rights. He had no choice but to admit wrongdoing. Everybody saw and heard it.
In some ways, the bigwigs will have been delighted a player as high-profile as Van Dijk has given them the chance to make an example of someone so early in the Premier League campaign.
But for me, swearing isn't enough to be hit with a mammoth fine, let alone a ban. Van Dijk is entitled to disagree with the decision, and it's not as if he refused to leave the field once the decision was confirmed by VAR. Had he questioned the authority
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