Premier League panel backs Pascal Struijk red card after FA overturns ban
A 3–2 panel vote supported the VAR intervention against Brighton’s Pascal Struijk, while a separate FA commission unanimously overturned his suspension.
The Premier League’s Key Match Incidents Panel has backed the red card shown to Brighton defender Pascal Struijk against Sunderland on 10 October, even though a separate Football Association commission overturned his suspension. The split decisions leave the dismissal supported by the league’s review panel while Struijk’s ban remains quashed.
The five-member panel voted 3–2 that the video assistant referee was right to recommend changing referee Thomas Bramall’s initial decision. Bramall had not awarded a foul when Sunderland forward Wilson Isidor tried to reach a through-ball, but sent Struijk off after reviewing the incident at the pitchside monitor. The dismissal came in the 57th minute.
Why the panel and FA commission disagreed
According to BBC reporting republished by Yahoo Sports, the panel concluded that Bramall should have awarded a foul and red card for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity. Its two dissenting members considered the VAR intervention incorrect because they regarded Isidor’s chance of reaching the ball before Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen as subjective.
Brighton challenged the dismissal, and the three members of the FA disciplinary commission unanimously overturned Struijk’s suspension. They found that Isidor ‘had not taken control of the ball and the pass was clearly going to run through to the goalkeeper,’ according to the BBC report. The Argus reported the Premier League’s explanation that the review panel and disciplinary commission are separate bodies with different purposes and processes.
What the overturned suspension meant for Brighton
The successful appeal made Struijk eligible for Brighton’s subsequent match against Crystal Palace, which Brighton won 5–0. He missed the game because of injury. The Argus described that absence as the match he would have missed through suspension had Brighton’s appeal failed.
The panel comprises three former players or coaches, a Premier League representative and a Pro Ref representative. Its vote addressed the officials’ decisions during the Sunderland match; the FA commission’s ruling determined the disciplinary consequence for Struijk. The panel’s assessment did not reinstate the overturned ban.
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Sources and context
- Prem panel backs Struijk red card even though FA overturned suspensionBBC, republished by Yahoo Sports
- Now panel say Struijk red card was right all alongUSA Today colleagues, republished by The Argus
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.