Newcastle United goalkeeper Nick Pope was handed a red card against Liverpool in the Premier League game on Saturday and the player is all set to miss the Carabao Cup final against Manchester United next weekend.
According to reports, the only way Pope will be able to play in the final against Manchester United is if Newcastle decide to appeal against the suspension and it is overturned.
However, that seems quite unlikely because Pope did commit a handball outside the Newcastle box and as per the regulations, the referee’s decision was correct.
Meanwhile, Newcastle manager Eddie Howe was asked whether the Premier League side could launch an appeal against the suspension. However, Eddie Howe chose not to give a definitive answer to that. He revealed that it was a harsh reaction and the player will be devastated to miss out on an important game next week.
He said: “I don’t know where we stand on that. It would be foolish of me to comment on that too much.”
“It was probably technically handball but I don’t know the rules on red cards outside the box. For me it was a harsh reaction but I understand if it’s in the rules.
“It’s harsh for Nick because he’s been magnificent for us and to miss the next game is a huge blow for him.”
Meanwhile, it seems that Newcastle will have to rely on Loris Karius or Mark Gillespie as their goalkeeper against Manchester United.
I am sure a few years ago a player was red-carded and he was allowed to play in a final only because his club played a friendly a few days before the final.