Leeds United employee lambasts John McGinn as ‘disgusting’ footage emerges
Noel Whelan has slammed Aston Villa midfielder John McGinn for his “disgusting” tackle which saw Leeds United starlet Archie Gray stretchered off the field.
The former Whites striker, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, claimed the 27-year-old was seeking “redemption” for an earlier challenge from the 16-year-old on Emi Buendia.
As seen in footage on Twitter, McGinn caught Gray strongly on the ankle during Leeds United’s 1-0 pre-season loss against Villa in Australia on Sunday (17 July).
Speaking post-match and quoted by Leeds Live later that day, manager Jesse Marsch revealed his medical staff are hopeful that Gray has suffered a sprained ankle rather than anything more sinister.
McGinn was booked for the challenge, which occurred in the 71st minute – but Whelan insisted the Scotland international would have seen red in a competitive match.
He told Football Insider‘s Ewan Kingsbury: “It’s cynical, and it’s a redemption tackle.
“It happens in football. Players don’t forget certain challenges, and because it was so quick off the back of Archie’s original tackle – you knew what it was.
“It was a disgusting challenge, and not a nice one to look at.
“I’m pretty sure if McGinn was on the receiving end of a tackle like that, he’d be in uproar.
“In any other game, it’s a red card. He’s got away with one there, and it’s another steep learning curve for a very young player like Archie Gray.
“I hope he’s going to recover very quickly. No-one wants to see tackles like that in pre-season, and it’s caused a very big setback.”
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