News

Everton said they are “surprised and disappointed” after their appeal against defender Michael Keane’s red card against Wolves was rejected by a Football Association panel.

The Premier League club expressed their belief that Keane’s three-game suspension “is clearly excessive” in a statement on Friday.

Centre-back Keane, 32, was sent off for pulling the hair of Wolves’ Tolu Arokodare in Wednesday’s 1-1 draw following a video assistant referee (VAR) review.

He will miss Everton’s FA Cup tie with Sunderland on Saturday, plus Premier League games against Aston Villa and Leeds.

He also reference an incident during Thursday’s Premier League match between Arsenal and Liverpool, in which Gabriel Martinelli attempted to shove the injured Conor Bradley off the field.

Moyes said: “Hugely disappointed. Hugely surprised. I’m probably more angry with the panel who thought that was the case. I have to question the three. I know who the three are and I’m amazed they in some way didn’t overturn it.

“We saw last night that it’s OK to throw a ball at somebody, it’s OK to push and pick up someone with a bad injury. But that a little pull of someone’s hair, accidentally, means a three-game ban is quite extraordinary for me.”

On the severity of the punishment, Moyes added: “Three games for what shouldn’t have been any games. I’m more embarrassed for whoever was on VAR. This is a young referee doing only his third or fourth game and VAR gave him a terrible decision. They shouldn’t have got involved at all.

Hair-pulling is not specifically mentioned in the laws of the game, however it is categorised as violent conduct.

That is because it cannot be considered something you would do naturally when challenging for the ball.

Everton said: “We appealed in the firm belief the incident did not meet the threshold for violent conduct as defined in the rules, and that the action was neither forceful nor intentional.

“Our appeal was also lodged in support of Michael Keane, a player who plays the game with the highest ethical standards and who, prior to Wednesday, had never been dismissed for violent conduct in his career.

“It is our firm belief that the severity of the three-game suspension is clearly excessive, and we are surprised and disappointed that this point of appeal has also been rejected.”

All kick-off times GMT, Conference seed in brackets

Saturday, 10 January

Los Angeles Rams (5) @ Carolina Panthers (4) – 21:30

This is a rematch from week 13, but I don’t think it’s fair to look at that 31-28 win for the Panthers. They managed to stay alive in the play-off hunt but their defence has kind of been the reason they’ve stayed in most of their games, rather than their quarterback Bryce Young.

The Rams are one of the Super Bowl favourites and I think their defence is going to be the final nail in the coffin for Carolina.

Matt Stafford is one of the leading MVP contenders and Puka Nacua leads the league for receptions. He’s just so physical in taking contested catches. His one-handed catches are incredible.

The Rams have struggled in the red zone in recent weeks without Davante Adams but he’s set to come back so, for me, it’s a clear Rams win.

Green Bay Packers (7) @ Chicago Bears (2) – 01:00 Sun

This is going to be awesome. They’re divisional rivals and it’s the NFL’s oldest rivalry, so there’s so much familiarity. That’s what makes it so exciting.

They’ve played each other twice in the last five weeks and they’re 1-1. The Packers almost beat the Bears in week 16, and that was after Micah Parsons’ injury and being without Jordan Love for most of the game (concussion).

Caleb Williams is doing such a great job with his game management, his athleticism, the way the ball just jumps out of his hand, and his receivers are coming together, so I have the Bears on this one.

Sunday, 11 January

Buffalo Bills (6) @ Jacksonville Jaguars (3) – 18:00

With Kansas City, Cincinnati and Baltimore not in the play-offs, this is the clearest route to the Super Bowl the Bills have had, but this is a scary Jags team.

They’ve won their last eight, so they’re the team that has momentum. They’re having fun out there, and we’ve never seen this version of Trevor Lawrence before, the way he’s finishing in the red zone. He looks so confident.

The Jags have been clicking on all three phases since their bye week. They brought in Jakobi Myers and the Bills have to stop Travis Etienne running all over them.

But I still have so much faith in Josh Allen. We’ve seen it so many times, where he comes to life in the fourth quarter, and it’s hard to bet against him. So I’m going for my Bills, especially because I’ll be working at the game – and I can’t stand the thought of them losing!

San Francisco 49ers (6) @ Philadelphia Eagles (3) – 21:30

Given their injuries, coach Kyle Shanahan has been incredible to get the 49ers where they are. They have done a great job of staying afloat with their defence, but I just don’t know how sustainable it is.

Having slipped from potentially the top seed to the sixth, Shanahan’s been like ‘we’ve just got to do it the hard way’. This must mean so much to them because of the 2023 NFC Championship game in Philly, when Brock Purdy got injured and Christian McCaffrey had to play quarterback.

I don’t think the Eagles are going to do anything fancy. They’re going to run the ball, get the play-action to throw outside to their receivers and then play great defence.

It’s not cute, it’s not exciting, but they just know how to win. I have a lot of faith in Jalen Hurts and their defence, so I’m going Eagles.

Los Angeles Chargers (7) @ New England Patriots (2) – 01:00 Mon

Playing at New England is tough in the cold and I think that makes a big difference. I don’t know how much further the Patriots will go, but I think they’ll win this.

Justin Herbert’s been hit so many times. The Chargers’ offensive line has just not been able to protect him. Like the Bills, their receivers haven’t been able to get separation. It’s like Herbert’s the magic man again, whereas at least the Patriots have some receivers, and Drake Maye has been phenomenal.

I think he’s earned the MVP because it’s a great story. He’s with a franchise that’s not been itself since Tom Brady left and it’s unbelievable what he’s done in his second year.

Monday, 12 January

Houston Texans (5) @ Pittsburgh Steelers (4) – 01:00 Tue

The Steelers’ win on Sunday was wild, but I think we have the same conversation around them every year. Mike Tomlin’s done a great job, they’ve got a winning record again and got to the play-offs, but for so long it’s not been more than that.

I’m going for the Texans because of their defence, it’s just ferocious. Danielle Hunter has 15 sacks, Will Anderson is second in the NFL with a career-high 85 QB pressures, and they have four players with four interceptions. That’s a crazy stat – which of their defensive backs do you throw towards?

Aaron Rodgers is doing tons trying to get the Steelers’ offence on the same page but they’re still having miscues. DK Metcalf is back from suspension but I just don’t see them having enough firepower to compete with this defence.

It’s the main reason the Texans could make it deep into the play-offs. They can cause a lot of trouble for a lot of people.