Exclusive: Referee issue highlighted after Manneh’s Hibs red card controversy
Keith Hackett says the second yellow card shown to Hibernian midfielder Alasana Manneh against St Mirren highlights a problem currently facing referees.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official exclusively told Football Insider that the 26-year-old was unfortunate to be sent off in the goalless draw between the two sides on Sunday (16 February).
Having joined Hibernian from Danish side Odense in the January transfer window, Manneh made his debut for the club as a 71st minute substitute against Stephen Robinson‘s side.
However, that outing would be a short-lived one for the Gambian international, as he saw red just 13 minutes later.
Alasana Manneh endures Hibernian debut to forget
Having been yellow carded almost immediately after his introduction to the match, Manneh did not taking long to pick up another booking.
As the new Hibernian signing jumped to win a ball in the air, his leading arm struck the head of St Mirren midfielder Killian Phillips, who then went to ground, seemingly in some pain.
That prompted referee Ross Hardie to wave a second yellow card in the direction of Manneh, bringing an early end to his Hibernian debut.
While St Mirren have made their frustrations with officials in Scotland clear this season, many felt they were fortunate to find themselves ending the game against ten men in these circumstances.
Now Hackett has indicated that he agrees with that perspective, rather then the decision to send Manneh off.
Keith Hackett reacts to red card controversy in Scotland
Speaking to Football Insider about the decision to send Manneh off for a second yellow, the former referee said:
“I’ll be honest, not enough for me. The referee’s right on top of it. Has he seen an illegal elbow?
“I think this is symptomatic of the difficulty that modern referees have in the game. In my day that player wouldn’t have gone down, and the challenges would’ve been fiercer if I’m honest.
“I think this is the difficulty where referees go for a safe option, the sort of things are is he aware that players already on a yellow card?
“If you’re too close sometimes you don’t have sufficient thinking time to react, and what you do is you react, he’s gone that’s a yellow and then he’s suddenly realised ‘I’ve already given him a yellow’ and off he goes.
“I wouldn’t have expected a yellow card for that challenge.”
The ten men of Hibernian were able to see that game out for a goalless draw, meaning they remain fifth in the Scottish Premiership, three points and position ahead of St Mirren.