Harry Wilson ‘close to a red card’ as Keith Hackett re-analyses Brentford vs Fulham incident
Harry Wilson could have been sent off for a “borderline” challenge during a goalless draw between Brentford and Fulham.
That is according to former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA referee, Keith Hackett, who exclusively told Football Insider that another referee might have shown a red card to the Welshman on Saturday, 18 April.
In the 79th minute, the 29-year-old left Mikkel Damsgaard on the floor inside the Cottagers’ half, and replays showed that the winger had caught his opponent quite heavily, but no free-kick was given.
It was a decision that could have made a huge difference as Brentford drew 0-0 with Fulham at the Gtech Community Stadium, with Marco Silva’s side possibly fortunate not to go down to 10 men.
Harry Wilson gets away with big challenge on Mikkel Damsgaard
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the former referee said: “At the minimum, it’s a yellow, and it’s close to a red card. I’ll take the solid yellow, but I’d warn him against launching himself off the ground.
“He’s off his feet, he’s out of control, but the landing area is low on his opponent. He’s close to committing serious foul play. Wilson needs to take stock, and so too does his manager.
“What we used to see as a sliding challenge is almost outlawed in the game. On another day, a different referee might have justified a red card for that challenge. It’s borderline.”
| Harry Wilson vs Brentford | Stats [FotMob] |
| Minutes played | 90 |
| Passing accuracy | 85% (17/20) |
| Chances created | 2 |
| Tackles | 1 |
| Recoveries | 4 |
| Ground duels won | 33% (2/6) |
| Fouls committed | 1 |
The Wrexham-born star has only been sent off once in his senior career, but had VAR intervened on this one, it could have been a second for the Fulham man this weekend.
How did football fans react to the footage?
The unanimous verdict is that Fulham’s No.8 was extremely lucky not to be punished for this challenge, with fingers being pointed at Howard Webb for the country’s state of officiating.
Of course, many others were happy not to see the 29-year-old go into the referee’s notebook, with the player heavily selected in this season’s Fantasy Premier League game.
By no means is he a violent player, and with 11 goals and seven assists this season, he has become vital to Silva and the Fulham team. Seeing him suspended would have been a huge miss.
Nonetheless, it raises questions over how Paul Tierney could miss something like this, with VAR likely to judge it not bad enough for a straight red, and therefore, unable to get involved.
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