The Premier League has one more anecdote. Because Idrissa Gueye from Everton FC slapped his teammate in the championship game at Manchester United on Monday evening, he had to leave the field early.
The bizarre scene occurred in the 13th minute at Old Trafford stadium. What had happened? After a bad pass from Idrissa Gueye in his own half, teammate Michael Keane verbally attacked the Senegalese. Gueye wasn’t having this and shouted back angrily.
The argument escalated into a physical argument, during which Gueye slapped his teammate in the face. Without hesitation, referee Toby Harrington showed the red card for unsportsmanlike conduct – as required by FIFA’s rules.
A similar incident occurred during a World Cup qualifying match between the German national team and Wales. In March 2009, Lukas Podolski slapped his captain Michael Ballack. Despite a relatively secure lead, Ballack had given Podolski loud instructions that Podolski apparently could not accept. However, the incident had no consequences for Podolski.
In the lead despite being outnumbered
Everton FC, on the other hand, had to make do with one man less for almost 80 minutes in Manchester. However, that didn’t seem to have much of an impact on the flow of the game. After about half an hour the guests took the lead.