England will be without one of its key defenders at the 2026 FIFA World Cup quarterfinals and semifinals, should it advance that far.
Jarell Quansah received a straight red card against Mexico, and it was announced on Thursday that his suspension was increased to two games instead of the standard one. So, Quansah will miss Saturday’s quarterfinals match against Norway and a potential semifinals matchup against the winner of Argentina-Switzerland.
Quansah’s tackle on Mexico left back Jesus Gallardo was not penalized on the field, but he was sent off after a VAR review.
“I called it live when I was working,” FOX rules analyst Mark Clattenburg told us, “and I’ve seen the replays and more and more replays, and the challenge has a lot of speed. … Yes, he does touch the ball, but the foot goes over the top of the ball and catches his opponent’s leg. I never had any doubt because not many people can defend that this is not a red card.”
Fellow FOX analyst Dr. Joe Machnik agreed, saying, “What I believe they saw in the English player’s foul was the excessive force lunging with two feet into the opponent. Then, when it may have been a consequence of his being on the ground, he actually lifts his leg with studs exposed higher into the opponent’s leg. So, I believe they felt that the one game wasn’t enough.”
Clattenburg explained further on bumping up the suspension to two matches.
“If you hurt someone with a challenge that can potentially stop a player from playing in the rest of the tournament because of that tackle, it should be more than one match,” Clattenburg said. “And I believe that this challenge certainly was more than a normal situation, and a second suspension for the match is the right decision.”
Jarell Quansah’s tackle wasn’t penalized on the field, but he was given a red card after VAR suggested the referee take another look. (Michael Steele/Getty Images)
England will be frustrated that Quansah’s suspension was increased while the United States benefited from the review process surrounding Folarin Balogun’s suspension. For Clattenburg, though, Quansah receiving an extra game is consistent with how FIFA has operated in the past.
“This is a big question because what we’ve seen in this World Cup is unprecedented, especially with Flo Balogun’s one-match suspension,” Clattenburg said. “In the past, this type of challenge would automatically receive two matches: one automatic and one for the nature of the challenge.
“We saw it earlier in the tournament where a Qatar player broke a Canadian player’s leg, and he received five matches. So they look at the challenge, they look at what the impact was, and make a decision. And I believe that two matches is fair and consistent.
“Take the Flo Balogun situation out, it’s consistent with other tournaments.”
