How Long Will Liam Roberts Be Banned For After Horror Jean-Philippe Mateta Challenge?

How long will Liam Roberts be banned for? That is the question on many people’s minds after his horror tackle on Crystal Palace forward Jean-Philippe Mateta. 

The Millwall goalkeeper was shown a straight red card after the shocking incident during Saturday’s FA Cup clash at Selhurst Park.

With barely eight minutes on the clock, Roberts rushed out of his box and tried to beat Mateta to the ball. Instead, he kung-fu kicked the Frenchman in the head and completely wiped the Palace star out.

Incredibly, referee Michael Oliver needed the assistance of the VAR to determine Roberts’ dismissal. Eagles chairman Steve Parish labelled the tackle as “the most reckless challenge I’ve ever seen.”

Mateta was whisked off to A&E where he had 25 stitches to his left ear. He has since been discharged from hospital and is recovering at home.

The game itself was comfortably won by the Premier League side. A Japhet Tanganga own goal opened the scoring before Daniel Munoz netted seven minutes later. Wes Harding was able to halve the deficit on the stroke of half-time.

With nine minutes left to play, substitute Eddie Nketiah scored to give Palace a 3-1 win. Now, the South Londoners will meet Fulham after Sunday’s FA Cup quarter-final draw.

❌ The FA are considering giving Millwall goalkeeper Liam Roberts a longer ban for his challenge on Mateta.

🚑 Mateta had to be given 25 stitches after suffering a severe laceration to his left ear. pic.twitter.com/WddOT8FOnP

— Footy Accumulators (@FootyAccums) March 3, 2025

 Liam Roberts Ban Could Be Extended

As it stands, the Liam Roberts ban will see the Millwall goalkeeper miss the next three EFL Championship games. The Lions are set to play Bristol City, Watford and Leeds.

However, the FA are expected to submit a “clearly insufficient” punishment claim which has the potential to see Roberts’ ban extended further.

The governing body has until 1pm on Tuesday to send through their claims owing to the challenge and offence as “truly exceptional.” The findings must have evidence to the claims and they must be sent to Millwall, too.

It’s not clear at this stage if the FA will proceed with trying to increase Roberts ban. If they do and the case is to be heard, it will be done so by an independent regulatory commission.

Ultimately, they will decide if the ban will be extended or if the standard punishment is sufficient enough. Saturday’s dismissal was just the second of 30-year-old Roberts career. His first came in a League Two clash playing for Northampton.