Paul Tierney’s decision to send off Lisandro Martinez for pulling Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s hair sparked debate, with Rio Ferdinand joining Michael Carrick in criticizing it.
Rio Ferdinand furious over decision against Manchester United
Rio Ferdinand has asked PGMOL for an explanation as to why Lisandro Martinez was sent off during Manchester United’s defeat to Leeds on Monday night. Martinez was shown on VAR replays grabbing Dominic Calvert-Lewin by the hair and was shown a straight red card by Paul Tierney.
Leeds won with Noah Okafor’s brace in the first half, but Casemiro’s header was just a consolation for the home side. But the biggest story was Martinez’s red card in the 56th minute after a scuffle with Calvert-Lewin.
The incident was missed by Tierney on the field, but VAR John Brooks sent the referee to the pitchside monitor, where it was determined that Martinez had committed an act of violence. Martinez, who has just returned from injury and replaced Harry Maguire who was sent off against Bournemouth, will serve a three-match ban.
United manager Michael Carrick was furious after the match, describing the decision as “one of the worst I’ve ever seen”. He also drew attention to Calvert-Lewin’s apparent foul on Lenny Yolo in the build-up to Okafor’s first goal.
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And the United manager has backed his former teammate Ferdinand, who posted screenshots of the two incidents and simply wrote about X: “Please explain @FA_PGMOL.”
Although hair-pulling is not specifically mentioned in the FA’s competition rules, it is considered an act of violence. After watching the replay, Tierney said on the pitch: “After review, Manchester United’s No.6 was found guilty of violent behavior by pulling his hair.The final decision is a red card.”
Carrick was furious at the decision and was furious in an interview with Sky Sports after the match. “We conceded a goal after Lenny Yolo hit us with a forearm to the back of the head. They didn’t make the decision to reverse it, but that was the big moment of the game,” he said.
Rio Ferdinand’s position on this matter was clear (Image: X)
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“It was a shocking decision to send off Richa (Martinez). It’s been two games in a row where decisions went against us, but that game was one of the worst I’ve seen.”
He added, “You can also elbow Lenny Yolo in the side of the head, in the arm that’s in charge. Then he throws his arm in Richa’s face, and he’s off balance because of it, and it half touches the back of his hair, and it pulls the bob out and it looks like this — I don’t even know what that looks like.”
“It wasn’t a tug, it wasn’t a pull, it wasn’t aggressive. He just touched it and got sent off. The worst part is that he got sent off to cover it up as a clear mistake. It’s shocking.”
Lisandro Martinez sent off for pulling Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s hair
He got some sympathy from Jamie Carragher. “I don’t think the football fans, players and managers watching this think this is a red card,” he said on Monday Night Football. “Everyone in the game sees it and thinks it’s not a red card. Be polite.”
However, Gary Neville disagreed. He said on the Gary Neville Podcast: “It’s not the equivalent of spitting, but it’s kind of in the category of things you wouldn’t do knowing you’d get a red card.”
“It’s a bit soft. It’s like a technical red card. It’s not a violent act, but as a footballer it’s one of those things where you can’t pull someone’s hair.”
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