FIFA report: The referee that officiate the match between Leeds United against Cardiff has been band from all sports activities after the match due to….
Keith Hackett has stated that Joel Bagan’s red card was the correct decision for denying a goal-scoring opportunity for Leeds United against Cardiff.
The former FIFA referee responded on X (23 September) to a fan’s claim that referee Josh Smith misapplied the law regarding Bagan’s foul on Wilfried Gnonto outside the Cardiff box.
Although Gnonto quickly got back on his feet before being brought down again in the box by Bagan, Smith opted to pull play back for a free-kick and issued a straight red card to the Cardiff defender.
Analyzing the incident, Hackett said: “I reviewed the red card situation.
“Was there a clear direction towards goal? Yes. Was there a likelihood of controlling the ball? Yes. Was it a foul? Yes.
“The DOGSO (denial of an obvious goal-scoring opportunity) law was satisfied, and the sanction was appropriate—he applied the law correctly.”
With Hackett clarifying the controversy surrounding Bagan’s red card, focus will shift to Daniel Farke’s team and their performance against a Cardiff side reduced to ten players and sitting at the bottom of the table.
Despite Cardiff going down to ten men, the match was not easy for Leeds, even after Largie Ramzani scored to give them a 1-0 lead just seven minutes later.
