Everton midfielder Idrissa Gueye was sent off just 13 minutes into Monday night's match against Manchester United at Old Trafford after striking his own teammate Michael Keane in the face. The bizarre incident, confirmed by VAR as violent conduct, left the Toffees to play the majority of the game with 10 men.
The altercation erupted after a Manchester United attack broke down. Keane and Gueye clashed inside Everton's penalty area, with the Senegalese midfielder appearing to lose his composure and raising his hand to Keane's face. Referee Tony Harrington showed no hesitation in brandishing a straight red card.
Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford had to physically restrain Gueye as tempers flared. Keane gestured to his head, seemingly questioning his teammate's actions. Even after the dismissal, Gueye initially refused to leave the pitch and had to be escorted towards the tunnel by Pickford and Iliman Ndiaye.
VAR confirms violent conduct
The Premier League Match Centre confirmed the decision on social media: «The referee's call of red card to Gueye for violent conduct was checked and confirmed by VAR – with the action deemed to be a clear strike to the face of Keane.»
Sky Sports commentator Gary Neville expressed disbelief during the live broadcast. «He slapped his own teammate - he's gone,» Neville said. «There's a coming together between him and Michael Keane. It always looks unsavoury when it's teammate on teammate.»
Neville questioned the severity of the contact in replays: «How much venom was in that slap? [...] There is no doubt a hand comes out to the face but it didn't look too much. They might have had to send him off purely because there is a strike to the face.»
Rare incident in Premier League history
The sending-off marked the first time a player has been dismissed for an altercation with their own teammate since Stoke City's Ricardo Fuller slapped captain Andy Griffin in 2008. The scenes also drew comparisons to Newcastle United's Lee Bowyer and Kieran Dyer, who were both sent off for fighting each other during a home defeat to Aston Villa in 2005.
Joe Hart, analysing the game for BBC Radio 5 Live, suggested Gueye was harshly treated. «The referee wasn't even close enough to hear what Idrissa Gueye was saying but he was in Michael Keane's face, who is considerably bigger than him and shoved him off with one arm,» Hart said. «If that's all that happened though, it isn't a red card. Something must've been brewing between them two.»
Despite being reduced to 10 men early, Everton broke the deadlock in the 29th minute when Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored the opening goal after receiving a pass from James Garner.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
