England don’t understand Coufal’s red card. This can’t be a penalty, write fans

Vladimir Coufal received his first red card in a West Ham jersey on Wednesday. He saw it after a tackle on Alexandre Lacazette and according to British fans it was very harsh. Judge for yourself.

Vladimir Coufal hasn’t had it easy since the opening whistle of the Arsenal game. Already in the opening fifteen minutes he received his first yellow card when he struck Kieran Tierney’s chin with his hand.

The eleventh minute yellow card was a big problem. On his side, the in-form speedster Gabriel Martinelli was attacking, Tierney too is extremely good up front. Coufal was still defending until the 67th minute.

Then a pass to a free Alexandre Lacazette flew into the Hammers’ penalty area. Coufal had no choice, if he wanted to stop the French sniper, he had to take a risk and use a slip.

The Czech international decided to jump into the fray, hitting the ball and taking Lacazette’s legs at the same time. The referee didn’t react at first, but after a short reflection he pointed to the penalty spot.

The Arsenal striker added a lot to the fall, he even went to take the penalty kick himself (unsuccessfully). In England, such interventions on the edge are usually allowed, and it cost Coufal a sending off in addition to the penalty.

Under the Sky Sports post, most commentators agreed. “Absolutely embarrassing decision,” was the most fawning comment from user Tom. Benjamin, on the other hand, alluded to the fact that the situation was not reviewed at all. “Terrible decision, what is the point of VAR?”

Even Arsenal fans didn’t agree with Anthony Taylor’s decision. “I’m an Arsenal fan but this can never be a penalty,” Max wrote to Sky Sports. There were plenty of similar opinions, but it won’t bring Coufal back to West Ham.

So David Moyes will not have a single right-back available for this weekend’s game against Watford. This is because Ben Johnson and Ryan Fredericks are injured.

Source: Twitter, iSport