Dejan Kulusevski avoided a possible red card for an elbow on Marc Cucurella during the first half of Tottenham‘s Premier League game against Brighton.
Midway through the first half, the in-form winger was caught by the left-back and he reacted angrily by flinging his elbow in the Spaniard’s direction, making contact with his chest.
Despite protests from Cucurella and his Brighton teammates, referee Craig Pawson only penalised Kulusevski with a yellow card. According to BT Sport, Pawson was not advised to review the incident by the VAR official as it was a subjective decision.
Kulusevski perhaps had Cucurella to thank for not making more of the contact – had he gone to ground clutching his face, Pawson might have felt compelled to issue a sterner punishment.
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“Now this is subjective to the referee and how he sees it and reads it. The issue I have is I don’t see how he’s not seen that as attempting to hurt somebody which would come under the violent conduct rule which would be a straight red card.
“I think Tottenham got away with one there and Kulusevski got away with one. It was unfortunate for Brighton.”
Glenn Murray agreed. “It’s an incredible decision,” he said. “It’s 100 per cent a red card, there’s no doubt in my mind. Kulusevski tries to take Cucurella’s head off and that’s where VAR has got to come into play, this is why we’ve brought it into the game. Even if Craig Pawson goes over to the monitor and has a look for himself… that’s why we’ve got VAR for those contentious decisions.
“I think Tottenham are very, very lucky.”
Jenas added: “If it was a punch that missed, what’s the difference? He’s trying to hurt somebody and that’s why it’s a red card and it was missed by Lee Mason and VAR as well.”
Kulusevski has been a revelation since joining Spurs from Juventus in January, contributing three goals and six assists in his opening 12 Premier League games.
However, he struggled to make an impact against the Seagulls and was replaced just past the hour mark by Lucas Moura as Antonio Conte sought to inject some energy into a lethargic performance.
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