Virgil van Dijk said he was “angry” at the decision to give him the first of two yellow cards as he was sent off for the first time in his Dutch career in Friday’s 1-1 Nations League draw with Hungary .

The Liverpool defender received two yellow cards in three minutes towards the end of the second half, the first for inconsistency and the second for a foul, which was a clear yellow card.

That first card for the protest, after Donyell Malen was knocked to the ground as he charged towards the goal as the Dutch trailed 1-0 against the hosts, sparked particular frustration for Van Dijk.

“(The red card) is a bummer, it shouldn’t have happened. But I’m particularly angry about the first one,” Van Dijk told ESPN Netherlands.

“They say the captain is the only one who can talk to the referee. I walk towards him. Quickly, but not in a bad way, not at all. Very respectful. Because I had the feeling that it was a breakaway, he did it. “Don’t even attack the ball when even the captain can’t say anything… then it becomes difficult.

Dutch coach Ronald Koeman was also perplexed by his captain’s first yellow card.

“That moment was frustrating,” Koeman told NOS. “I don’t understand. I think we agreed that a captain can protest to the referee.”

“That foul (on Malen) was good for a red card. There was no intention at all to play the ball. Virgil then taking the second card is not convenient. He knows that himself.”

Koeman confirmed he will not strengthen his squad for Monday’s game in Germany, which leads Nations League Group A3 with seven points from three games, two points more than the Netherlands.

This makes it an important game in which the Dutch could climb to the top of the table or, conversely, find themselves five points behind with two games to go.

Koeman had a “sensible feeling” after the draw in Budapest when his side trailed to a Roland Sallai goal in the first half but equalized late on through Denzel Dumfries, a goal that came after Van Dijk’s red card.

“We didn’t give up, played one-on-one and got the equalizer,” he added. “Then they (Hungary) created some dangerous situations, but we defended well. So you go home feeling sensible.”

Information from Reuters contributed to this report.