Liam Roberts’ Mateta challenge was reckless – but he did not deserve an extended ban

There will not be a great deal of sympathy among football supporters for Liam Roberts.

The sight of Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta poleaxed by Roberts’ left boot in last weekend’s FA Cup tie was enough to make MMA fighters wince. The striker was left needing 25 stitches for an ear wound, with an understandably upset Palace chairman Steve Parish pointing out that the challenge was “life-endangering”. It was no exaggeration: had Mateta not turned his head at the last moment, his injuries may have been far worse.

Roberts was rightly shown a red card — although why referee Michael Oliver needed the help of VAR to reach that conclusion remains a mystery — for a reckless challenge, leading with his studs. The three-match ban that followed was an inevitable punishment about which the former Walsall goalkeeper could have no complaints.

But now, Roberts is facing up to a six-game suspension. The Football Association appealed to a regulatory commission that the standard three-game suspension for serious foul play was insufficient, the commission agreed and added a further three games.

That is where things become a little less clearcut. Should punishments in football be determined by the actions of a player or by their consequences? The former is surely a fairer measure.

Roberts did not intend to cause Mateta any harm. That much was accepted by Palace on the day of the game and, according to Roberts’ first public statement on the incident this afternoon, was acknowledged by Mateta himself when the players exchanged messages a few hours later.

The FA has a duty to deter any other players at all levels of the game from committing similar challenges that could endanger the safety of an opponent. But the desire to see Roberts punished beyond the standard ban felt as much like a response to the public outcry as it did a rational response to the incident.

The game was broadcast on terrestrial television in the UK, with Parish making his initial comments on BBC at half-time, and the social media outrage was swift and insistent, led (predictably) by Piers Morgan.

Had Roberts made an identical, dangerous attempt to win the ball but a split-second timing difference seen him catch Mateta’s shoulder instead of his head, would there have been a similar push to extend his ban?

Only the FA will know, but it seems unlikely. The crime would have been the same, the red card would have been rightly shown and a three-match ban would have been forthcoming, but the incident would probably have been forgotten by Saturday evening.

There is an argument that Millwall could have handled the situation better. They acknowledged Roberts’ error and wished Mateta well at the time but it took almost a week for them to publish comments from the player himself.

When they came, shortly after the FA announced the extended ban, they hit the perfect tone.

“As soon as I could, I reached out to Jean-Philippe personally to apologise, and I was thankful to hear back from him that evening that he was OK and reassured me not to worry,” said Roberts.

“I am devastated by what happened. I unequivocally accept the red card as awarded and accept my punishment. Furthermore, it has been extremely unpleasant to observe suggestions that I intended to harm a fellow professional.

“I have categorically never stepped onto a football pitch with the intention of hurting anyone. Misleading articles and comments have resulted in an unthinkable amount of abusive messages and threats towards my family and I.

“To the footballing community who know me and reached out with support through this tough time, thank you, I appreciate every single message.”

Had that message been sent out sooner, it is possible that sympathy would have been greater.

Ultimately, Roberts was reckless, not malicious. He was already facing a suspension alongside the public scorn which his horrendous error has brought, not to mention the guilt he must have felt at costing his side any realistic chance of causing a famous FA Cup upset.

That ought to have been punishment enough.

(Top photo: Jacques Feeney/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)