Ronald Koeman‘s sending off against Granada came as a surprise. It hadn’t been an overly combative game, and little controversial had happened.
Granada‘s goal, which came just before he was dismissed, came from a perfectly legal run of play. But the referee swiftly walked over to the Dutchman and showed him a red card. The fourth official complained that Koeman had insulted him.
According to the referee’s report, the Barcelona boss said “what a character”. To send off a coach for something like this is unacceptable. The Dutchman has been very critical of VAR throughout the season, and a lot of the time with good reason. On Thursday, he was sent off for expressing his opinion aloud.
Koeman is one of those coaches who speaks out, whether it’s to his players or the press. Sometimes that can hurt.
If there is consistency with sending off an individual for something so little, each game would be abandoned before half time because half of the team would be sent off.
The dismissal also came at a hugely significant point in the season, just days against a game against Valencia and then a huge six-pointer in the title race against Atletico Madrid. Now, Barcelona have the handicap of being without their coach.
