Virgil van Dijk breaks silence after Liverpool red card as FA decision expected
Virgil van Dijk admits he is "gutted" to be absent for Liverpool this weekend after breaking his silence following his red card against Newcastle.
Van Dijk will miss Sunday's Premier League visit of Aston Villa having been dismissed less than half-an-hour into the Reds' 2-1 win at St James' Park last weekend.
The Liverpool skipper could now face an extended ban after he was slapped with a charge by the Football Association on Tuesday for "improper manner and/or used abusive and/or insulting words towards a match official" given his reaction to being sent off by referee John Brooks for a foul on Newcastle forward Alexander Isak on the edge of the area.
An angry Van Dijk was then spotted shouting and pointing his finger in the face of Brooks, and confronted fourth official Stuart Attwell before making his way down the tunnel having been ushered away by Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp.
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And writing on Instagram ahead of the clash with Villa at Anfield, the Reds defender said: "Gutted to miss the game. Hate not being able to contribute to the team.
"Obviously I can’t really comment on the circumstances around the suspension, I want to respect the process whilst it’s ongoing. I’ll be at Anfield supporting the boys. Big game. Come on the boys!"
With Ibrahima Konate out through injury, Liverpool have only Joe Gomez and Joel Matip as available senior centre-backs for the weekend. Academy youngster Jarell Quansah, who made his senior debut when replacing Matip on 77 minutes at Newcastle, is another option.
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