How many games is William Saliba suspended for? | OneFootball

William Saliba was sent off during Arsenal’s 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth in the Premier League at the weekend, with the Frenchman’s first-half red card contributing to a first loss of the season for the Gunners.

Saliba was shown a straight red card in the 30th minute for the denial of a goal-scoring opportunity, when he dragged down Bournemouth’s Evanlison. A yellow card was initially shown, before Saliba’s punishment was upgraded to red following consultation with VAR.

It is the first red card of the centre-back’s career, though is already Arsenal’s third dismissal of the season. The North London side have dropped points in each of the games they have had a man sent off, after Declan Rice (Brighton) and Leandro Trossard (Manchester City) were sent off earlier in the campaign.

With Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard currently out injured, Saliba’s suspension is a big blow to Arsenal ahead of some big fixtures on the horizon.

Why was Saliba sent off?

Saliba was dismissed after hauling down Evanilson. The challenge was deemed a goal-scoring opportunity for the Brazilian forward, with no defenders between him and the Arsenal goal. VAR deemed the incident a red card offence despite the distance between Evanilson and the goal, with the foul taking place just inside the Arsenal half.

A statement from the Premier League Match Centre read: “The referee gave Saliba a yellow card for a challenge on Evanilson. The VAR deemed that Saliba denied an obvious goal-scoring opportunity and recommended an on-field review. The referee then upgraded the yellow to a red card.”

What games will Saliba miss through suspension?

Despite being a straight red card, the denial of a goal-scoring opportunity is a one-match ban. The suspension will only count for domestic competitions, allowing Saliba to play in Tuesday’s Champions League clash with Shakhtar Donetsk.

The France international will miss next weekend’s crunch clash with Premier League leaders Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium. Saliba will be free to return in domestic competition when Arsenal take on Preston North End in the Carabao Cup on October 30.

Read – Five things we learned from the Premier League weekend

See more – Premier League Team of the Week – Jones, Watkins, Son

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