England will certainly be without Jarell Quansah for their World Cup quarter-final against Norway this weekend.
The former Liverpool defender was shown a red card, following a VAR review, for a tackle on Jesus Gallardo in the last-16 win against Mexico and has since discovered his punishment will be a two-match suspension.
A statement on Thursday read: “The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has imposed a 2-match suspension for a breach of article 14 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code.”
The additional match ban comes after the FIFA Disciplinary Committee concluded Quansah’s tackle on Gallardo constituted “serious foul play”.
As such, Quansah will be forced to watch England’s showdown with Norway from the stands in Miami, while he will also miss the semi-final - against either Argentina or Switzerland - if the Three Lions progress.
Quansah could yet still play in the tournament, but only on the condition that England reach the final or contest the third-place play-off. This is because the suspension only applies to the World Cup.
Can the FA can appeal Jarell Quansah's World Cup ban?
No, the Football Association (FA) cannot appeal Quansah’s ban despite considering taking this course of action amid FIFA's decision to suspend Folarin Balogun's automatic one-man ban for his sending off in the USA’s round of 32 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Balogun was due to miss the last-16 showdown against Belgium, but was cleared to play as the co-hosts fell to a 4-1 defeat and subsequently eliminated.
However, there will be no such reprieve for Quansah and England as under the tournament regulations there is no grounds for the FA to challenge the ban.
Though, it is understood that the FA privately challenged the processes applied and questioned whether VAR had been correctly used when determining Quansah was to be sent-off.
Thomas Tuchel's assistant coach Anthony Barry has said: "Disappointing, not with the decision, just the fact that we lose a good player.
"He was excellent in training, and of course we have some injuries in that position, so it looked like a space had opened up for Jarell.
"But the decision's been made - we won't waste any more energy on it. Overall for us, we lose a good player for two games, but it's just another hurdle that we have to overcome."
