James Tarkowski should have been sent off during Everton's defeat at Liverpool on Wednesday, the Premier League's refereeing body has acknowledged.
Tarkowski caught Liverpool midfielder Alexis Mac Allister just below the knee with his studs in the 11th minute of the Merseyside derby at Anfield.
The Everton centre-back was shown a yellow card and the video assistant referee (VAR) decided to take no further action after a 10-second review.
But BBC Sport has been told by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) the tackle met the threshold for serious foul play.
The view of PGMOL is that an on-field review should have been recommended to referee Sam Barrott and ultimately the original decision overturned.