Red cards for hair-pulling have never been so common in the Premier League.
The latest incident occurred on Saturday when Sunderland defender Dan Ballard was sent off for pulling Wolverhampton striker Tolu Arokodea’s hair during a scramble for the ball during the first half of a team meeting at Molineux.
Alokodea was shown a straight red card in January after he was pulled by Everton defender Michael Keane in a match that ended 1-1.
Last month, Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez was sent off for pulling Leeds striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s hair during a match at Old Trafford.
The decision, made after a VAR check, was described as “shocking” by United manager Michael Carrick, but was not overturned.
Pulling an opponent’s hair is considered an act of violence and will result in a three-game suspension.
In the past year, there have been instances outside the Premier League where players have been given red cards for hair-pulling.
In the Second Division Championship, Ipswich left-back Leif Davies was handed a retroactive ban in March after he was caught pulling the hair of Leicester’s Caleb Okoli.
At last summer’s Club World Cup, Paris Saint-Germain midfielder João Neves was sent off for pulling down Marc Cucurella by the hair in the final minute. Chelsea won 3-0 In the final.
At last year’s Women’s European Championship, Germany’s midfielder Katherine Hendrich was spotted by VAR. pull the ponytail France captain Gridge Mbok took a free kick and was given a red card.
Last month, Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastre said: took out her cell phone In the post-match interview and replay of the hair-pulling incident that was missed by match officials during the match. women’s champions league Match against Arsenal. And in the semi-finals, Bayern Munich’s Franziska Kett was sent off for pulling an opponent’s hair during last Saturday’s 1-1 first leg draw with Barcelona.
___
AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
