Man United get new Lisandro Martinez red card referee verdict after Cole Palmer flashpoint. This is just too disgusting 🤮
Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has acknowledged that Manchester United’s Lisandro Martinez was fortunate his challenge on Chelsea’s Cole Palmer lacked intensity, allowing him to escape with only a yellow card.
During the second half, Martinez made a high-stakes tackle near the halfway line, catching Palmer with his studs. The Chelsea forward, a former Manchester City player, had just flicked the ball over Martinez’s head before the contact.
Referee Rob Jones initially issued a yellow card for the incident, and after a thorough review, VAR officials upheld the on-field decision, deciding no further action was necessary.
“I think he’s lucky,” Gallagher admitted. “If his starting position had been further from Palmer and he’d come in with more distance, speed, and intensity, that’s when he’d be in trouble.
“Because he’s so close, he doesn’t generate the necessary force. The contact is brief.
“It’s the short distance that keeps the intensity low.” While opinions have been divided on Martinez’s challenge, there was general agreement that Manchester United’s penalty for Robert Sanchez’s foul on Rasmus Hojlund was justified.
Hojlund was brought down in the box by Chelsea’s goalkeeper, Sanchez, resulting in a penalty for United.
Explaining the decision, Gallagher said: “I thought it was a penalty when I saw it live and I still do. Sanchez doesn’t make contact with the ball and catches Hojlund on the ankle.
“It’s similar to Ederson’s challenge on Anthony Gordon, which I also believed was a penalty. He doesn’t touch the ball.
“When you watch it in slow motion, things can look exaggerated – but I think it’s a clear foul. Sanchez challenges with his arms, misses the ball, and catches Hojlund on the ankle. The referee made the right call, and VAR was never going to overturn it.”
