Liverpool manager Arne Slot has raised concerns over the consistency of red card decisions in the Premier League. Slot drew comparisons between Maxence Lacroix’s red card for Crystal Palace against Manchester United and Marc Guehi’s yellow card against Liverpool.
Red Card Debate: Lacroix vs. Guehi
Maxence Lacroix was sent off for pulling back Matheus Cunha in Manchester United’s win over Crystal Palace. This decision has sparked debate, with comparisons being made to a similar incident involving Marc Guehi and Mohamed Salah in Man City’s win at Liverpool last month.
In the Manchester United-Crystal Palace match, the red card decision proved game-changing. Manchester United, trailing 1-0, were awarded a penalty after the foul, which Bruno Fernandes converted. With a one-man advantage, United went on to win the match 2-1.
Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner criticised the decision, calling it “the Old Trafford bonus”. Glasner argued that Manchester United should have been awarded a free-kick and Lacroix should have received a yellow card.
According to Glasner, the foul began outside the box and should not have resulted in a penalty. He told Sky Sports, “It’s a very harsh red card. It’s usually where the first contact is that where the foul is, and it definitely starts outside the box.”
However, the rules state that if a foul continues into the box, a penalty should be awarded. Contact between Lacroix and Cunha persisted until the edge of the penalty area.
Former Premier League striker Jay Bothroyd argued it wasn’t a clear goal-scoring opportunity so shouldn’t have been a red card for Lacroix. He believed goalkeeper Dean Henderson would have dashed out to stop Cunha from scoring.
Slot’s View on the Incidents
Arne Slot highlighted the similarities between the Lacroix incident and Guehi’s challenge on Salah, for which Guehi received a yellow card. The foul on Salah occurred outside the box. However, the presence of Ruben Dias prevented Guehi from receiving a red card because he had not denied a clear goal-scoring opportunity.
Slot pointed out that Dias was further away from Salah than Jaydee Canvot was from Cunha. Measurements showed that Dias was seven metres away from Salah, while Cavot was six metres away from Cunha.
- Dias was 7 metres from Salah.
- Cavot was 6 metres from Cunha.
Slot believes the officials made an error, suggesting that either Guehi should have been sent off or Lacroix should not have been. “For me, [Lacroix’s foul] was a red card. The one from Guehi was a red card as well, but I wasn’t backed up by everyone.”
Slot’s conclusion is that the officials have made a mistake – either by not sending off Guehi or by showing a red to Lacroix.