Everton ‘shocked’ after Keane’s red card decision remains

Club Response

Everton expressed their “shock and disappointment” upon receiving confirmation that their appeal against Michael Keane’s dismissal during the match against Wolves was denied by an FA panel.

The Premier League team firmly stated that they believe Keane’s three-game suspension “is clearly unwarranted,” as outlined in their public statement made on Friday.

Incident Overview

Michael Keane, a 32-year-old central defender, was shown a red card for pulling the hair of Wolves’ player Tolu Arokodare during a 1-1 draw on Wednesday. This decision was made following a review by the video assistant referee (VAR).

Due to this ruling, Keane is set to miss Everton’s upcoming FA Cup match against Sunderland, as well as Premier League fixtures against Aston Villa and Leeds.

Manager’s Reaction

In a press conference that followed the club’s announcement, Everton’s manager, David Moyes, voiced his “anger” towards the three-member FA panel responsible for the ruling, stating he felt “embarrassed” for the VAR after referee Tom Kirk was advised to reassess the situation.

Moyes referenced a separate incident during a Premier League match between Arsenal and Liverpool, where Gabriel Martinelli appeared to push an injured Conor Bradley off the pitch.

Moyes remarked: “I am enormously disappointed and surprised. I find myself questioning the trio who made this decision. I’m aware of who they are and cannot believe they did not overturn the ruling.

“We witnessed last night that throwing a ball at someone and shoving a player with an injury did not attract penalties. Yet a mere hair pull, which was incidental, results in a three-game ban — that seems absurd to me.”

On the nature of the ban, he stated, “Three matches for what should have warranted no suspension is baffling. I feel embarrassed for the official involved in VAR. This referee is still relatively inexperienced, possibly in only his third or fourth game, and VAR led him to make a poor decision. Their involvement was unnecessary.”

Interpretation of the Ruling

While the laws of the game do not specifically address hair-pulling, it is categorized under violent conduct because it is not considered a natural action when contesting the ball.

Everton remarked, “We launched the appeal believing that the occurrence did not meet the criteria for violent conduct as stipulated in the rules and that the action was neither forceful nor intentional.”

Furthermore, the club expressed their belief in Michael Keane’s character as a player who upholds high ethical standards, noting that he had never before faced a dismissal for violent behavior in his career.

The club concluded, “We stand firm in our belief that the severity of the three-match suspension is grossly exaggerated, and we are dismayed that our appeal was turned down.”

BBC Sport has reached out to the FA for a statement on this matter.