Conor Gallagher avoided a possible sending-off during Tottenham’s 2-1 pre-season victory over Chelsea in Sydney, though former PGMOL boss and ex-FIFA referee Keith Hackett reckons the officials could easily have shown red instead.
The derby produced an early flashpoint just 11 minutes in when Gallagher went into a challenge on Chelsea’s Dario Essugo. Referee Alex King opted for a yellow card, but Hackett felt the tackle sat right on the border of a dismissal.
Hackett questions the call
Breaking down the incident, Hackett noted that while Gallagher’s foot connected low on his opponent’s body, the challenge as a whole ticked the boxes for recklessness.
Speaking on the matter, Hackett explained that the tackle sat right on the edge of red-card territory — the low point of contact worked in Gallagher’s favour, he said, but the recklessness involved still justified a yellow, given the midfielder was clearly off balance, lacked control, and put real force into the challenge.
He added that had the referee shown a straight red instead, few would have argued given how dangerous tackles become when a player loses control of their body.
Gallagher’s early caution wasn’t the only card of note — Tottenham later had Kevin Danso sent off in the 49th minute for stopping a clear goalscoring chance, leaving Spurs down to ten men. Even so, they held on for the win: Sandro Tonali put Tottenham ahead, Estêvão levelled for Chelsea, before Richarlison struck a stoppage-time winner to seal victory for Roberto De Zerbi’s side.
Gallagher’s combative performance against his old club fit the intense, high-tempo approach De Zerbi wants to instill in this Tottenham side. The tackle itself split opinion among refereeing pundits, but plenty of Spurs fans welcomed the midfielder’s fiery edge as the club continues building toward the new Premier League campaign.
