Martin Skrtel was hit with a three-match ban on Wednesday for stamping on Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea , but the Liverpool defender escaped any further action after he appeared to mock the FA by posting a picture of clowns on social media . The photograph appeared on Skrtel ’ s Instagram account on Wednesday morning , shortly before the FA announced that he had been found guilty of deliberately treading on De Gea towards the end of Liverpool ’ s 2-1 defeat to their rivals at Anfield on Sunday . The FA are aware of the post but have decided not to take the matter further . Martin Skrtel 's foot lands on David de Gea 's leg in the incident which saw the FA charge the defender . Skrtel could have been in more trouble for posting this picture of clowns after the FA upheld his ban . Premier League : Arsenal away , April 4 . FA Cup Sixth round : Blackburn away , April 8 . Premier League : Newcastle at home , April 13 . Skrtel , 30 , had denied the FA charge which was brought on the basis of video evidence , after referee Martin Atkinson confirmed that he did not see the incident with De Gea . The Slovakia defender becomes the second Liverpool player to be banned for violent conduct in the game after Steven Gerrard was given an automatic three-game suspension for stamping on Ander Herrera just 38 seconds after coming on as a half-time substitute . Both players will now miss the trip to third-placed Arsenal a week on Saturday and Newcastle ’ s visit to Anfield on April 13 , as well as Liverpool ’ s FA Cup quarter-final replay at Blackburn five days earlier . Liverpool also have a number of injury concerns arising from the United game . Daniel Sturridge ( hip ) and Adam Lallana ( groin ) have withdrawn from England duty , while Raheem Sterling is expected to do the same after playing in tomorrow ’ s Euro 2016 qualifier against Lithuania at Wembley . Skrtel was charged with violent conduct but claimed the alleged stamp was not intentional . A three-man panel of former elite officials reviewed the footage after it was missed by Martin Atkinson ( right ) Brendan Rodgers has a major selection headache ahead of the trip to Arsenal in the Premier League . Sterling has been having injections in a toe injury and is unlikely to risk aggravating the problem by playing in Tuesday ’ s friendly with Italy . Goalkeeper Simon Mignolet has been having scans on an ankle injury at Belgium ’ s training camp after colliding with Wayne Rooney on Sunday and Dejan Lovren has pulled out of the Croatia squad with a recurring abdominal strain . Lovren would have been an ideal candidate to replace Skrtel , who made no secret of his feelings yesterday when the FA announced that he had been found guilty of deliberately treading on De Gea ’ s right shin . A three-man panel of elite officials reviewed the footage on Monday and agreed unanimously that it was a red card offence . The 30-year-old denied the charge and argued that any contact with De Gea was unintentional , but an independent disciplinary commission decided otherwise yesterday . Captain Steven Gerrard was sent off after stamping on Manchester United 's Ander Herrera on Sunday . Gerrard will also miss three games after seeing red for this stamp during the 2-1 defeat . An FA statement was released at lunchtime shortly after Skrtel had posted a photograph of four clowns on social media in what was interpreted as a clear dig at the authorities . The FA have been known to punish thinly-veiled criticism before — not least when Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was fined £10,000 last season for bringing the game into disrepute after making sarcastic comments about match officials following a defeat by Sunderland . It is understood that they did not think there was enough evidence on this occasion to justify a similar charge against Skrtel . He is currently in Slovakia preparing for tomorrow night ’ s Euro 2016 qualifier against Luxembourg and next week ’ s friendly against the Czech Republic . Considering the problems afflicting Rodgers and his Anfield squad at the moment , it is probably just as well .
Martin Arsenal set to miss games against Skrtel , Newcastle and Blackburn . Liverpool defender denied charge of stamping on David de Gea . Arsenal was not punished during 2-1 defeat by Manchester United on Sunday . The 30-year-old posted a picture of clowns after ban was upheld . Sportsmail understands Arsenal will face no extra punishment for photo . CLICK HERE for all the latest Liverpool news .