Idrissa Gueye was sent off under bizarre circumstances after slapping teammate Michael Keane in a furious scene during Everton’s 1-0 win over Manchester United on Monday night.
It was the worst start imaginable for an away game at Old Trafford. With just 13 minutes remaining, Everton were reduced to 10 men and clearly in disarray after Idrissa Gueye lost his head and was shown a red card in bizarre circumstances.
It all started with a common misunderstanding. Gueye picked up the ball inside his own penalty area and attempted to pass it to teammate Michael Keane, who was not on the same wavelength. The spilled pass allowed Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes to take a free shot at goal, but his shot just missed the target.
Jordan Pickford’s screams and inquisition between defenders. But then, things were beyond normal. Keane and Gay faced each other, and after a few shoves, the midfielder aimed a light slap at his towering teammate.
Pickford quickly pulled an enraged Guay away from Keane, but the damage was too great and referee Tony Harrington was quickly on the scene and showed him a red card. “He went nuts,” declared Gary Neville, co-commentary for Sky Sports.
read more: Everton star Idrissa Gueye reveals she apologized in the dressing room after slapping a team-materead more: David Moyes’ manager Idrissa Gueye made a surprise entrance after Michael Keane slapped Everton’s win against Manchester United
It was only the third time in Premier League history that a player had been sacked for fighting with a teammate, and the first time in 17 years. Gueye joins Ricardo Fuller (Stoke 2008), Lee Bowyer and Kieron Dyer (Newcastle 2005) in an unwanted section of the league’s history.
However, surprisingly, Everton did not suffer the same fate as Stoke and Newcastle, who deservedly lost the game. David Moyes’ side looked fired up after receiving a red card on Monday night and attacked tooth and nail to frustrate a lackluster United side.
Pickford made several crucial saves, denying Joshua Zirkzee with a fine late stop, and a superb solo effort from Keenan Dewsbury-Hall in the 29th minute gave Everton a hard-fought 1-0 victory.
However, it will be painful for the Toffees to be without Gae for such a long time. The midfielder was handed an automatic three-match ban for violent behavior and will miss games against Newcastle, Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest.
Gueye is also part of the Senegal squad that will take part in the Africa Cup of Nations next month, so he may not play 10 games for Everton again. Senegal’s first match will be on December 23rd, and the tournament will run until January 18th. Clubs are required to send players on international duty two weeks before the competition, so Gueye may not be able to take part in Everton’s trip to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea on December 13, when his suspension expires.
“Moment of madness”
His goal meant that Dewsbury Hall were able to look back at the main talking points of the match in a slightly different tone than they would have if they had lost. “It was just a crazy moment,” he told Sky Sports. “It was clearly avoidable. All I can say is that Idrissa apologized to us all at half-time and spoke his mind. That’s all he can do and we move on from there.”
“The reaction from the players after the game was unbelievable and top-level. We could have easily collapsed and let ourselves be attacked and lost the game comfortably, but that probably helped us grow even more as a team.”
“The manager said we would deal with the situation another time, but all we had to do was stick to the plan we had. He just wanted us to continue doing what we were doing and focus on what we could change.”
Mr Guye posted an apology on social media on Tuesday morning. “First of all I would like to apologize to my teammate Michael Keane. I take full responsibility for my reaction,” it read.
“I also apologize to my team-mates, staff, fans and club. What happened does not reflect who I am or the values I stand for. Emotions may run high, but nothing justifies such behavior. We will ensure that this never happens again.”
“I like it when players fight.”
Everton manager Moyes felt it was unfortunate that Gueye was sent off as he felt he had gone too far in the win over his former club United. “I like to see players fight each other if someone doesn’t do the right thing. If you want to get results with that toughness and resilience, you want someone to act on it.”
“I don’t think anyone in the stadium would have been surprised if nothing had happened (no red card). I think the referee had a little more time to think about it. He was told by the rules of the game (that) if you slap your own player, you could be in trouble.”
“It’s unfortunate that he got sent off. But we were all football players and I’m angry at my teammates. He apologized for the sending off, praised the players, thanked them and apologized.”
“Fighting is not a bad thing”
United, without injured pair Benjamin Sesco and Matheus Cunha, showed that at Old Trafford as they struggled for 81 minutes against Everton’s 10 men. United had 69% possession and had 25 shots at Pickford’s goal, but none found the net.
This led United manager Ruben Amorim to make a surprising response to Gueye’s red card. He said, “Fighting is not a bad thing. Fighting doesn’t mean we hate each other.
“When you fight, you lose the ball and you fight because you’re going to concede a goal. When the players lose the ball, we want them to fight with each other.”
At the end of the day, his team won, so Guyet’s moment of madness probably won’t be remembered as negatively as his predecessors. However, his suspension means Everton will have to serve him for a long time.
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