England’s Jarell Quansah has received a two-match ban for his red card against Mexico in the round of 16.
The defender was given his marching orders after a high sliding challenge, and a statement from FIFA has confirmed he will miss the Norway game, but he also won’t be available if England advance to the semi-final.
The official World Cup rules state that a red card comes with a one-match ban, and we are yet to get the full reason for Quansah being ruled out of an additional fixture.
This decision, reported by The Athletic, comes against a tense backdrop around suspensions at the tournament. We have been talking all week about Folarin Balogun’s ban being postponed, allowing him to play in the USMNT’s 4-1 loss against Belgium.
There were widespread accusations of corruption attached, given president Donald Trump’s claims that a personal phone call to FIFA boss Gianni Infantino moved the needle.
For England, Quansah’s absence adds to their right-back woes. With Reece James struggling for fitness all tournament, and Tino Livramento’s early departure from the tournament, the decision to leave Trent Alexander-Arnold looks worse by the day.
But that won’t be the source of frustration for England fans. Rather, it’s the contradictory nature of the responses to two similar challenges — with the differentiating factor seemingly being status as a host nation.
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