Newcastle United will not be appealing the red card shown to Anthony Gordon against Brighton in the FA Cup, meaning the England international will be missing as the Magpies take on Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final next weekend.
Gordon was shown a straight red card for putting his hands into the face of Brighton defender Jan Paul van Hecke last Sunday. And his manager, Eddie Howe, says there is no point appealing because there is no evidence to suggest the call from referee Anthony Taylor was incorrect.
“We discussed it as a club, with the respected people that we need to discuss it with, the lawyers,” Howe said during a press conference today. “We just felt that there probably wasn’t sufficient grounds.
“There’s no intention from him to hurt anybody. But you have to look at it and go ‘Does this have a chance of being successful?’. If there’s no chance of being successful, what’s the point of appealing? So Anthony understands.”
Gordon will miss Newcastle’s Premier League game against West Ham United tomorrow. He has a three-game ban and so will also sit out the final against Liverpool and then a match at St James’ Park against Brentford.
Howe also confirmed that defender Sven Botman will be missing from the final. He is set to spend some time on the treatment table with a knee injury.
“Sven, we have been trying to get him back to full fitness, he was very close to the Brighton game but the day before he felt something again in his knee,” Howe said. “This week he has had the same discomfort so it looks like he will have to have an operation.
“He needs a small operation to clear out some fluid and then he should be fine again. We hope he should be back in about eight weeks.”
