Why Arne Slot may escape touchline ban despite Liverpool v Everton red card | OneFootball

A chaotic end to the midweek Merseyside derby saw Liverpool boss Arne Slot sent off after the final whistle following an intense handshake with referee Michael Oliver.

A clearly irate Slot berated Oliver as he firmly shook his hand after James Tarkowski’s had dramatically scored a 97th-minute equaliser for Everton in a thrilling 2-2 draw.

Per Football Association (FA) rules, the Reds coach was not allowed to conduct any post-match interviews due to his sending off, meaning he has so far been unable to provide his side of the story.

Slot's primary assistant Spike Hulshoff was also red-carded alongside players Curtis Jones and Abdoulaye Doucoure, and while players receive automatic bans for red cards, that’s not the case for managers and coaches.

It means that Slot could, in theory, escape a touchline ban and be back in situ for Liverpool’s clash with Wolves on Sunday afternoon.

The FA laws on managers and coaches state that there aren’t automatic touchline bans applied for an individual being dismissed from the technical area.

For the remainder of the match in which they are sent to the stands, they can’t observe the game from the sidelines, can’t return to the field of play post-match or conduct post-match media interviews or conferences.

The laws then that a match official will subsequently report the incident to the FA, which could also lead to a charge, warning or reminder of responsibilities but that no further action could also be taken depending on the seriousness and circumstances of the incident.

FA charges can be treated as either ‘standard’ or ‘non-standard’, with ‘standard’ charges for any confrontational behaviour towards match officials potentially including a touchline ban, which will be decided by a Regulatory Commission. This applies to Slot as he confronted Oliver.

In all likelihood, the Liverpool boss will receive a touchline ban but there is a specific timeline to deal with the incident:

This means the fallout from Sloit’s red card could last a couple of weeks, although the decision may also be fast-tracked.

Arne Slot had a heated confrontation with referee Michael Oliver (Getty Images)

Wasn’t Slot banned earlier in the season?

Yes, he was. Unlike for red cards, managers do receive an automatic one-match ban for the accumulation of three yellow cards in a single season.

Slot reached this threshold in December, which meant he was forced to watch the Carabao Cup quarter-final win over Southampton from the stands.

If he accumulates six yellow cards across the season, he will be banned for two matches and if he reaches the threshold of nine, then the automatic ban will be three games.

What can Slot do against Wolves if he is banned?

If Slot ultimately does receive a touchline ban, potentially for this weekend’s game with Wolves, there will be a number of restrictions on what he can do as he watches the game from the stands.