Newcastle United fans paid close attention to a major incident during Manchester City vs Manchester United on Sunday.
While Toon fans continued to celebrate Newcastle’s 4-0 win over Leicester City, the Manchester derby was taking place on Sunday.
It was a rather tame affair, as Manchester United snatched victory away from Pep Guardiola thanks to two late goals from Bruno Fernandes and Amad Diallo.
However, there was one major flashpoint in the game. Rasmus Hojlund and Kyle Walker went head-to-head in the first half, with the Manchester United striker furious about a challenge from the 34-year-old.
Walker then did his best to get Hojlund sent off, flinging himself to the floor to imply that he had been headbutted. Replays showed that he clearly had not, with referee Anthony Taylor opting to book both players.
It was embarrassing from Walker, who was slammed by Roy Keane during Sky Sports’ analysis at half-time.
Fabian Schar was sent off for incident identical to Hojlund vs Walker
It was good to see common sense prevail. In all honesty, Walker should have been given a bigger punishment for his antics!
But it absolutely was not a headbutt from Hojlund, just like it was not a headbutt when Fabian Schar was sent off for an identical incident in the opening game of the season.
During the first half of Newcastle’s 1-0 win over Southampton, Fabian Schar went head-to-head with Ben Brereton Diaz. The Toon centre-back was furious after a challenge from Brereton Diaz, who then proceeded to hurl himself to the ground in embarrassing fashion.
Alan Shearer called Brereton Diaz ‘pathetic’, while Russell Martin said it was a ‘moment of madness’ from Schar.
It was a disgrace to see Brereton Diaz get away with what he did, and now an identical incident in the Manchester derby makes the decision to send Schar off even more laughable.
The PGMOL should be issuing an apology to Newcastle United, as inconsistent refereeing continues to plague the Premier League.
What Ben Brereton Diaz said about Fabian Schar incident
Despite the replay showing that Schar did not headbutt Brereton Diaz, the Southampton forward has insisted that he felt contact.
“For me it was adrenaline,” he told the Daily Mail.
“In the game, I felt contact and went down and that’s just how it is.
“If it’s not a red card, the VAR has got to come in and say it’s not a red card but, for me, I felt contact and that’s it.”
The decision resulted in Schar serving a three-game suspension.
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