18 February 2024 , 15:49
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Jamie Redknapp believes Brighton winger Kaoru Mitoma was fortunate to escape a career-ending injury after a challenge from Mason Holgate which he likened to an assault.
Sheffield United defender Holgate went in high on Mitoma during the first half of Sunday's Premier League game between their respective sides. He was initially shown a yellow card, but that was upgraded to red after a VAR check.
Chris Wilder's team suffered further after going down to 10 men, conceding goals to Facundo Buonanotte and Danny Welbeck before the break, with a Jack Robinson own goal and a Simon Adingra brace later putting the Seagulls further ahead. It was the Blades' second straight red card since the turn of the year, following Rhian Brewster's dismissal against West Ham.
Speaking on Sky Sports during the half-time break, pundit Redknapp pulled no punches in his assessment of the challenge. The former Liverpool man even went as far as suggesting it would have been considered scandalous back in the 90s and early 2000s when he was playing.
"It's an assault. It's one of the worst tackles I've seen in years," Redknapp said. "Even in my era that would have been a scandalous tackle.
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"How on earth Mitoma's managed to get his left leg out of the way, I've got no idea. Thank goodness he has, otherwise that's career-ending. His career would be finished.
"I feel so sorry for Chrissy Wilder in this instance, because his best-laid plans... he's said 'alright, let's not make any mistakes, let's not give anything away this first 10 minutes, and you have a player that does that. I've got no idea what he's thinking, but he's cost his team - they've got to run around, chase, try and get into a game, and obviously the [opening] goal's going to come from that, but a scandalous tackle."
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Mason Holgate was shown red after a VAR check (Sky Sports)It was the third straight season in which Holgate has been shown a red card in the Premier League. The 27-year-old was dismissed against Crystal Palace for two bookings while playing for parent club Everton last term, and was shown a straight red the previous campaign as the Toffees drew with Tottenham.
Sheffield United went into the game sitting bottom of the Premier League table with just 13 points all season. Closest rivals Burnley lost heavily on Saturday against Arsenal, while the gap to safety sat at seven points before kick-off.
Next up for the Blades is a trip to Wolves, one of the only teams they have beaten this season. After that, though, they play host to an Arsenal team who put five past Burnley at Turf Moor on Saturday.
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