Daniel Farke and Leeds United will likely be pleased to come away from Selhurst Park with a point after their 0–0 draw against Crystal Palace.
Leeds had a golden opportunity to take the lead in the first half when they were awarded a penalty in the Palace box, but Dominic Calvert-Lewin fired his effort wide, missing the chance to score his 11th Premier League goal of the season.
Things then became more complicated just before half-time when Gabriel Gudmundsson picked up a second yellow card and was sent off. Despite being reduced to ten men, Leeds showed real resilience after the break and managed to hold on for a valuable point.
Gudmundsson’s sending off angered Daniel Farke, who didn’t hold back his words after the game. Even Wayne Rooney is not too pleased about the incident.
Wayne Rooney lambasts the referee and a Crystal Palace star
Farke revealed after the game that the referee had forgotten that he had already booked Gudmundsson, and he had no option but to send him off once he produced the second yellow.
Rooney conceded that while the referee forgetting the first yellow was strange, he doesn’t believe that the foul deserved a second yellow card anyway.
He said on the BBC’s Match of the Day: “It was strange, and I don’t know if it was a yellow card anyway, but the fact that the referee had forgotten he was already on a yellow card, it was a strange situation.
“But if you go back to the foul, I don’t even think it was a yellow card.”
Crystal Palace Jaydee Canvot was seen celebrating Gudmundsson’s sending off, and Rooney insisted that it was disgraceful to see a player celebrating a fellow professional getting a red card.
He added, “This is a disgrace.
“To celebrate a player getting a red card is wrong”
Leeds have not been lucky with referees this season
Farke’s men have every reason to feel frustrated after poor refereeing decisions influenced the outcome of their third consecutive league game.
Leeds have every right to believe that if the officiating was better, they would not have lost at home against Manchester City and Sunderland ahead of the Palace trip.
Gudmundsson’s sending off on Sunday clearly impacted Leeds’ ability to push for a win in the second half, and they were happy to escape with a point.
With the relegation race tightening, Farke will hope that the rub of the green finally goes Leeds’ way at some point in the run-in.
