The Argentina international will now have until 6pm on Friday to answer the charge as he has been on international duty this week.

Mascherano was handed the charge for his reaction towards referee Steve Bennett after being sent off against Manchester United on Sunday and is currently serving a one-match suspension, although that could rise to three games if he is found guilty.

Meanwhile, the date for the case - scheduled to be heard by a regulatory commission - has been brought forward to Thursday 3 April.

Mascherano - who had already been booked - appeared to question referee Bennett's decision to caution Fernando Torres, and was then shown a second yellow card himself.

However, the player insists he did not swear at the match official and is unsure why he was dismissed.

He told the Daily Echo: "I do not know why I was sent off. I asked the referee what was happening. I did not swear. I was not aggressive and I did not confront him. All I did was ask him what was happening, nothing else.

"When he showed me the second yellow card and sent me off I could not believe it. I am sorry to my team-mates because that meant we went down to ten men and that made things even more difficult for us."