‘Waste of time’: Southampton manager reacts to Casemiro red card
The Brazilian midfielder was sent off during the first half of Manchester United’s 0-0 draw with Southampton
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Southampton manager Ruben Selles believes it is a “waste of time” talking about referees after his Manchester United counterpart Erik ten Hag criticised the decision to send off Casemiro during Sunday’s 0-0 draw at Old Trafford.
The Brazilian midfielder was initially shown a yellow card by Anthony Taylor after making a sliding challenge on Carlos Alcaraz, before upgrading his sanction after a VAR check.
Describing his player’s challenge as “fair”, Ten Hag railed against the “inconsistency” of officiating in the Premier League after a frustrating afternoon for Manchester United.
Selles feels, though, that decisions eventually balance themselves out, and the Dutchman’s criticism was unneccessary.
“I got a look at it but I don’t want to speak about the referee’s performance,” Selles told HampshireLive. “I think it’s a waste of time.
“The referee makes a decision, sometimes it goes for you and sometimes it doesn’t, that’s it.”
Southampton’s battling point came as a boost to their survival hopes, though they remain bottom of the Premier League table.
Alongside Casemiro’s dismissal, Ten Hag was also unhappy that VAR did not intervene after Armel Bella-Kotchap appeared to handle in the Southampton box.
For the Manchester United manager, the decisions spoke to wider problems in the English top division.
“What I think is the inconsistency, players don’t know anymore what is the policy,” Ten Hag explained. “We see it [in the] Premier League yesterday: Leicester-Chelsea, the VAR is not coming on the line.
“Especially [the Bella-Kotchap incident], it was clear and obvious handball, so what is the policy?”
Manchester United remain third and have a game in hand on Tottenham, who are two points behind Ten Hag’s side in fourth.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments