Ex-PGMOL chief: Aston Villa player could face 'extended' ban as footage analysed

Joao Gomes would undoubtedly be banned for more than three games were Aston Villa to appeal his red card against Brighton.

That is according to former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA referee, Keith Hackett, who exclusively told Football Insider that the Brazilian midfielder let his emotions get the better of him at the Amex Stadium.

After just 31 minutes on Sunday, 23 August, Unai Emery's side found themselves four goal behind, having totally capitulated away from home.

Matters only went from bad to worse for the Villans, with Gomes being sent off five minutes before the half-time break, lashing out at Georginio Rutter.

Already on a yellow card and throwing himself about, it was clear that Villa's new signing had lost his head and desperately needed to be replaced.

It was too late, though, when VAR advised Peter Bankes to review his kick-out at Rutter, in what was one of the simpler decisions of the weekend.

Aston Villa stand no chance of appealling Joao Gomes' red card

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Hackett encouraged Villa to steer clear of lodging an appeal, warning that it would only extend his ban.

"Aston Villa have seen a lot of players go out the door. It must be extremely frustrating for the manager who's built a team that was really competing last season," he said.

"When you have a high-scoring game, one of the things that a referee can do is talk a lot, often to the players who are losing.

"They start to lose concentration, frustration starts to creep in and when that does, you get incidents like this. For me, it's a new disciplinary era.

"I think he'll finish with a three-match ban. I think that's appropriate. If they lodge an appeal, then I think you'll see it extended.

"So I don't think it's worth the trouble to appeal against what was a pretty straightforward red card."

Could Unai Emery lose anyone else this summer?

Despite conceding four goals and going down to 10 men, much of the talk appears to be on the Ollie Watkins situation unfolding at Villa Park.

Emery was rather tight-lipped during his post-match press conference when quizzed about the England international's future.

All signs point towards the 30-year-old leaving for the Saudi Pro League, which is why he won't have travelled to the south coast with the rest of the squad.

This, of course, leaves the Villans in a very tricky position, explaining why Chelsea's Nicolas Jackson is so strongly linked with a move this summer.