Former Serie A match official Giampaolo Calvarese blasts the referee’s decision to send off Juventus defender Lloyd Kelly against Galatasaray.
The Bianconeri hosted the Istanbul-based giants for the second leg of the Champions League play-off round on Wednesday.
Luciano Spalletti’s men already had a mountain to climb after losing the first leg by five goals to two. The Italian giants pegged one back thanks to Manuel Locatelli’s spot-kick, but their mission became even more daunting when Kelly was shown a red card after the interval.
Juventus were reduced to 10 men following Lloyd Kelly’s harsh red card
Juventus still managed to equalise the score thanks to goals from Federico Gatti and Weston McKennie, but they ran out of steam in extra time after playing with a man down for more than an hour, and ended up losing 7-5 on aggregate.
Therefore, Kelly’s expulsion proved incredibly costly after all.
The English defender, who had already picked up a yellow card in the first half, received his marching orders when he grazed his opponent’s calf while landing from a jump.
Match official Joao Pinheiro showed Kelly a second yellow, but he was then summoned by the VAR for an off-field review, which resulted in a direct red card.
Calvarese explains why Kelly didn’t commit a bookable offence
While the Portuguese referee and the VAR were convinced of their decision to dismiss the former Newcastle defender, Calvarese insists they made the wrong call, as the incident was purely accidental.
The retired official explained Kelly had won the ball in the air, and shouldn’t have been punished for his landing.
“I am absolutely against this decision,” said Calvarese during his post-match appearance on Prime Video via JuventusNews24.
“He does nothing to commit a foul. He jumps to win the ball and, as he lands, he brushes the opponent’s calf.
“If you go to VAR, you have to come away with the right decision. I struggle to see a straight red — for me, it isn’t one.
“There is neither intent nor any real malicious attitude in the challenge. From a footballing point of view, something like this simply doesn’t exist. Even the idea of a booking leaves me perplexed, let alone turning it into a straight red.”
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