
Pascal Struijk was sent off midway through the second half of Leeds United’s 3-0 defeat to Liverpool yesterday for a challenge on Harvey Eliott.
The referee initially waved for play to continue, deeming it a fair tackle from Struijk. However, once Mo Salah frantically called the medical staff onto the pitch, Craig Pawson pulled out the red card for Struijk.
Liverpool fans were furious with the young defender. One user posted ‘There’s a reason they shouldn’t be flying into challenges out of control’ while another wrote ‘Always gonna be dangerous’. The comments were in response to the following tweet from The Anfield Wrap.
Important to note that Patrick Struijk looked haunted there and he hasn’t meant that level of damage. Plenty of Leeds fans also supported a young lad in a lot of pain.
— The Anfield Wrap (@TheAnfieldWrap) September 12, 2021
Obviously, Struijk never intended for Eliott to get hurt. In fact, replays show that Struijk initially won the ball from the side, before his trailing leg caught Eliott as he was standing, which caused the injury to the 18-year-old. It is likely that Leeds will appeal the decision in the coming days.
We wish Eliott a speedy recovery.
