Should Hair Pulling In Football Be Violent Conduct?

Cast your mind backmost to August 2022. Tottenham defender Cristian Romero tugged backmost Chelsea's Marc Cucurella by his hair.

The VAR, Mike Dean, opted not to intervene for an evident reddish card.

It created a statement successful nan sand. From that constituent on, a zero tolerance attack was adopted.

Has nan hairsbreadth been tugged? Then it is simply a reddish paper for convulsive conduct.

A strict exertion intends we person to judge that location are cases, for illustration Keane and Martinez, wherever nan reward appears excessively severe.

It is simply a spot for illustration handball successful nan Champions League. People do not for illustration immoderate of nan penalties, but they cognize what they are getting.

If you want consistency past you cannot person communal consciousness too.

After nan Keane reddish card, referees' leader Howard Webb was very clear that hairsbreadth pulling was "quite an violative thing".

"It was nan due outcome," Webb said. "It was different but if we spot it again adjacent week it will beryllium nan aforesaid outcome."

It took a fewer months earlier we did spot it successful akin circumstances pinch Martinez, and Webb was proved to beryllium correct.

There has only been 1 different VAR reddish paper successful nan Premier League, for Southampton's Jack Stephens connected Cucurella.

There person been respective different instances successful nan Club World Cup, Women's Super League and Women's Euros.

Hair pulling is 1 of those acheronian arts which is usually only spotted done video evidence.

It happens disconnected nan shot but is much identifiable than nan subtle elbow to nan thorax aliases a nip to nan stomach.

Even successful nan EFL, which does not person VAR, Ipswich's Leif Davis was precocious banned aft being picked up connected camera pulling nan hairsbreadth of Leicester's Caleb Okoli.

Evidence is not ever clear, however.

Fulham's Kenny Tete could person been sent disconnected for yanking nan hairsbreadth of Manchester City's Antoine Semenyo successful February. It whitethorn good person happened, but nan VAR did not consciousness nan grounds was conclusive capable for a review.