I-League 2018-19: Indian Arrows vs East Bengal – 3 talking points

#1 Two questionable red cards

Chullova was shown a straight red card

The highlight of the game was not just the three goals but two red cards shown by referee Senthil Nathan. East Bengal suffered most as they had to play around 40 minutes one man down.

The first situation occurred during the 55th minute. While taking a foul, Lalramchullova head-butted Rahul over some arguments. The Referee was standing close and didn’t waste much time before giving Chullova the marching order.

The head-butt is a punishable offence, but the decision of showing a red card was a bit too harsh. The challenge was not too dangerous and Chullova should’ve been cautioned with a yellow. The red card forced a valuable change as Santos had to be withdrawn to make way for Samad Ali Mullick in the right-back position.

Aniket Jadhav of India Arrows was shown two yellow cards within two minutes. There was no question regarding the first one due to an alleged kick on Kassim Aidara. In fact, he should’ve been shown a straight red for the rusty challenge.

Rather, a minimal challenge to Samad earned him another caution as he departed the field after coming on only six minutes ago.

I-League has often been criticised for its shabby refereeing decisions and Tuesday’s match was another example of that.