Erik ten Hag branded the officiating during Manchester United’s goalless draw with Southampton as “inconsistent” after Casemiro was sent off early in the game, meaning the midfielder will miss four domestic matches..
Anthony Taylor made the decisions after the VAR asked him to check the pitchside monitor after initially yellow-carding Casemiro for a challenge on Carlos Alcaraz. Casemiro’s studs received the ball and made contact with the player’s shin. It was the 31-year-old Brazilian’s second red card in eight games after never receiving one while at Real Madrid or Porto.
“What I think is [about] the inconsistency – players don’t know what the policy is anymore, and we saw it with the Premier League yesterday,” Ten Hag said..
“The VAR is not coming on the line [intervening] in Leicester-Chelsea [two penalty appeals], but it is coming on the line today.”
The Dutchman was also upset that the VAR ignored two United penalty appeals in the first half, one for a Kyle Walker-Peters challenge on Bruno Fernandes and one for an apparent handball by Armel Bella-Kotchap. “Then it’s two penalty situations, but they don’t come on the line, especially the first one, which was a clear and obvious handball,” Ten Hag said.
While Ten Hag is unsure whether United will appeal Casemiro’s dismissal, he did mention the yellow card the player received in the January draw at Crystal Palace, which resulted in a one-game suspension..
The referees arrive at the start of the season with a policy: we are the Premier League, we want intensity, and Casemiro has never received a red card in over 500 European games, but now he has received two. He’s tough, but he’s fair. As with Crystal Palace, this is highly debatable.
“It looks bad when you freeze it [today’s challenge]. Everyone who knows anything about football understands what is good and what is bad, and Casemiro is a good player. Tough, but fair, and it shows over 500 games in the big leagues without being sent off. He is dissatisfied.
“There is definitely a problem with freeze framing. If you do it this way, you must be consistent across all games..
It’s similar to what happened against Crystal Palace: when you saw the incident, you should have sent off three or four players rather than just one if you’re really consistent.”
Casemiro will miss Fulham’s FA Cup tie on Sunday, as well as league games against Newcastle, Brentford, and Everton.
Meanwhile, Alejandro Garnacho, who came on as a substitute, was seen leaving Old Trafford wearing a protective boot. “I don’t think it’s too bad,” Ten Hag said..
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