Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has criticised Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips for his challenge in Friday’s night Yorkshire derby against Sheffield United.
The 21-year-old produced a reckless tackle on United man George Baldock after the hour mark which enraged the opposition players but referee Scott Duncan only brandished a yellow card.
The decision did not come back to haunt the visitors as youngster David Brooks notched up a late winner which saw United leave Elland Road with a 2-1 victory.
Phillips had earlier scored a fantastic equaliser for the hosts after former Leeds striker Billy Sharp had broken the deadlock within the opening minutes of the match.
Speaking on the Sky Sports News Monday morning show Sky Sports Daily (October 30, 11am), Gallagher was extremely surprised that Phillips was not dismissed for his poor challenge.
“I think he’s lucky, I think he’s really lucky,” he said.
“I think he’s low, that’s the only thing I think that saves him.
“It’s just not a nice tackle, it looks worse each time you see it.”
OPINION
It is incredible to believe that Phillips wasn’t shown a straight red card for his challenge on Friday. Honestly, Baldock was very fortunate that he was able to carry on and finish off the match as the tackle could have easily caused so much more damage. The youngster is not only lucky that he wasn’t sent off, he is also fortunate that there will be no retrospective action taken for the challenge. In a sense, justice has been done as Phillips will still not be able to feature in the upcoming match against Derby County as he has picked up too many bookings already this season.