Stephen Robinson has defended Devante Cole claiming that there was no malice in his brutal attack on Jeremie Frimpong.
The Motherwell striker kicked out at Frimpong above his thigh in a move that could well have left lasting damage on the Celtic defender as he tried to break up the park.
It is the sort of challenge that Frimpong has grown used to in Scottish football with Andrew Dallas deciding that it was only worth a yellow card. If Cole can’t avoid challenges like that, malice or not he shouldn’t be on the pitch inflicting injuries on professional footballers.
Explain to me why this is not a red card? pic.twitter.com/PfQK4bbaWd
— Dodgy Foo (@dodgyfoo) November 8, 2020
The Daily Record reports:
Asked if it was a possible red, Robinson said: “No. He tries to win the ball. It’s a red card if there’s malice in it and there’s no malice at all. If he caught him, he caught him, but there was no malice. If you know Devante, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him make a tackle, so it would be hard to say there was malice.”
The word malice doesn’t feature in the Laws of the Game.
After treatment Frimpong was able to continue playing but 15 minutes later he was substituted by Hatem Abd Elhamed and seemed to be feeling the effects of the attack.
Hard physical challenges are a vital part of the game but only an instant red card will act as a deterrent on players that opt to go in thigh high on an opponents.
Dallas seemed to require some convincing before reaching for a yellow card which happened right in front of both dug-outs, the fourth official and an assistant referee.