'Frankly...' - Ex-refs chief delivers verdict on Ryan Gravenberch's game-changing red card vs Man City

Liverpool's Ryan Gravenberch was wrongly issued his first yellow card against Manchester City which led to his sending off.

That is according to former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA referee, Keith Hackett, who exclusively told Football Insider that Chris Kavanagh should have understood the tensions of the game.

In the end, the Liverpool midfielder was sent back to the dressing room early, picking up two yellow cards against Manchester City.

It was a moment that completely changed the landscape of the game, proving pivotal just moments later when Erling Haaland opened the scoring.

City would go on to score another two goals, leaving Anfield stunned after having plenty of hope before the incident.

And the outcome would likely have been different if the decision had rightfully gone Liverpool's way.

Keith Hackett delivers verdict on Ryan Gravenberch red card vs Man City

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Hackett argued that referee Kavanagh was wrong to book Ryan Gravenberch for his first yellow card offence.

He also added that the official should have taken the high-profile nature of the game into account and raised the threshold for yellow cards.

He said: "The referee did not have the ideal viewing angle and wrongly issued Ryan Gravenberch with a yellow card. Frankly, I did not see this as a foul, as the Man City player was off balance and going to ground.

"In a game such as this, the manager has a decision to make. He should ask himself: Should I substitute this player after he has received that yellow card to avoid the risk of a second yellow followed by a red card?

"A pity, given the context of this game.

"It was a yellow card in law. However, in a high-profile game with a great deal of tension, the referee should have raised the threshold for yellow cards higher to keep the card count down.

How Gravenberch let Liverpool teammates down vs Man City

Before his sending off, the Dutch midfielder was on track to potentially earn the man-of-the-match award.

However, that second yellow card would prevent that, and utterly change the game.

As per FotMob, Gravenberch completed more dribbles (four) than anyone else on the pitch, include the four wingers who started.

Additionally, he had a 100 per cent success rate with the ball.

His mazy runs in the middle of the pitch were opening doors for Liverpool to create chances.

Not only was going down to 10-men a limiter for the Reds, but it also meant they lost that weapon against the Manchester side.