Carlos Corberan was left to rue West Brom striker Brandon Thomas-Asante’s failure to manage the situation after he was handed two quick-fire yellow cards in the first half of his side’s 1-0 defeat to Sunderland at The Hawthorns.
West Brom were reduced to 10 men in the 43rd minute when Thomas-Asante was booked twice in quick succession for fouls on Jack Clarke and Dan Ballard – the latter whose every touch was booed by the home fans after his challenge in the reverse fixture had ruled Josh Maja out for four months.
Albion’s situation worsened further in first half stoppage time when Pierre Ekwah struck the only goal and inflicted a first defeat in 11 matches on the hosts, who are still seeking to confirm their place in the Championship play-offs.
The Baggies were marginally the better side heading towards half-time and with the game goalless, but a dramatic few minutes saw them lose their striker and fall behind.
“The second yellow card had a massive impact. You can have desire, but when you have a yellow card, you need to increase the calm,” Corberan said.
“To concede from a set-piece after losing a player is painful.
“If the referee understood it to be a yellow card, it has been our mistake to achieve two yellow cards. It’s a lesson for Brandon and it’s a lesson for us.
“We haven’t had the experience to play with a player less since I arrived. I know for some teams how much of a disadvantage it can be.
“For me it was unfair that in the first game, they injured Maja. It was a terrible action. It was unbelievable. The player (Ballard) who scored that day injured a player and the referee didn’t send him off or give him a yellow card.
“It was ridiculous – not just because it was against us, I am talking about football. If somebody today breaks their limits with two actions, they’re two yellow cards. When you have a yellow card, you must control yourself.”
Sunderland interim manager Mike Dodds, who guided the Black Cats to only their second victory in 12 with this win, was pleased with Ballard’s application in a testing atmosphere.
The centre-half enjoyed conducting the celebrations with the travelling supporters at the final whistle.
“It can work that way,” Dodds replied, when asked whether the boos could act as a performance stimulus.
“When you have a group like ours, and the opposition fans want to give some stick, they’ll stick up for each other. It brings the group closer together, but Dan is a big boy. He’s an international, he’s a Premier League player in waiting for me. He can take it.
“I was a bit surprised. I am always respectful to the fans, but the first boo did take me by surprise.
“He’s a great kid, Dan. West Brom fans target him, that’s fine, it’s a part of the game. Dan showed today he can handle that side of the game, but I didn’t need today as confirmation.”
Premier League clubs agree in principle to new spending cap
Premier League clubs have voted in favour of the competition potentially creating a spending cap, according to widespread reports.
The Premier League will now work on the studies and legal analysis required to possibly introduce a cap model from the start of the 2025-26 season onwards.
This would replace the current Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), under which Everton and Nottingham Forest have both been deducted points this season, while Leicester City have been charged with a breach.
At a meeting on Monday, 16 clubs voted in favour of the Premier League performing the required analysis. The model will then be presented to club's at the annual general meeting in June, for another vote.
According to reports, Manchester United, Manchester City and Aston Villa voted against the introduction of a spending cap, which would be tied to a multiple of whatever the lowest-earning side receives via the league's centralised broadcast and commercial deals. Chelsea were said to have abstained.
The cap would form part of the Premier League's "squad cost" rules, which will eventually replace the PSR.
While Everton have secured their safety despite suffering two points deductions worth eight points, Nottingham Forest remain in a relegation battle having been docked four points.
Forest will soon find out the result of their appeal, while Everton were set to have their appeal against the second of their deductions heard in the coming weeks.
Leicester, who have been promoted from the Championship, could face a points deduction next season, having been charged with a breach of the Premier League's regulations during the 2022-23 campaign.
Chelsea, meanwhile, seemingly got around the rules due to their ownership selling two Stamford Bridge hotels to another company within their group.
'We need tactics, but also luck' – Tuchel says Bayern up against Madrid 'aura'
Thomas Tuchel has warned his Bayern Munich team they will not only be facing Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals, but also going up against Los Blancos' European "aura".
While Tuchel will leave the Allianz Arena having suffered the ignominy of overseeing Bayern's first failure to win the Bundesliga title since 2012, he could yet bring Europe's top prize to Bavaria.
Bayern reached the last four with a 3-2 aggregate triumph over Arsenal, but they face a daunting task against the team that eliminated holders Manchester City in the last round.
Bayern are winless in their last seven games against Madrid, losing six and drawing one, and Los Blancos have won on their last three trips to the Allianz Arena – the longest winning streak ever recorded by a visiting team at Bayern in European Cup/Champions League history.
Coming up against Madrid in a competition they regard as their own, Tuchel believes, presents an additional challenge.
"When you're playing against Real Madrid, you're also up against the aura and the legend that surrounds them," Tuchel said at Monday's pre-match press conference.
"Obviously we need tactics, but also some luck. You can achieve a lot with tactics. The approach is the car, and the players drive it.
"We need to find a good balance and moments where we have solutions. The players also need freedom to bring it to life.
"But obviously we also need some luck in the game. We need to coax out that luck a bit as well."
Bayern versus Madrid is already the most played fixture in European Cup/Champions League history, taking place 26 times with 24 of those coming in the knockout stages.
Tuchel believes the tie would have been a fitting final, adding: "The semi-final already feels a bit like the final. My approach is to line up like a final.
"We won't approach it with the background that there's still a game to play. We want to play the game in isolation. We have the freedom, we'll put everything in tomorrow and then we'll see."
'I know my worth and I will show it' – Antony vows to silence Man Utd critics
Manchester United winger Antony has pledged to silence his critics after ending his long wait for a Premier League goal on Saturday, saying: "I know my worth and I will show it."
Antony has struggled since swapping Ajax for Old Trafford in an £86million ($108m) deal last year, only managing five goals and three assists in 52 Premier League appearances.
The Brazilian failed to net in his first 26 league games this season before ending his goal drought against Burnley on Saturday, though Zeki Amdouni's late penalty earned the Clarets a 1-1 draw.
Antony was also roundly criticised for taunting Coventry City's players in the aftermath of United's FA Cup semi-final win over the Sky Blues earlier this month, with the Red Devils inching through on penalties after surrendering a 3-0 lead in a 3-3 draw.
Having struggled to live up to expectations since arriving in England, he was asked by The Athletic whether his price tag had put him under additional pressure, but he says that is not the case.
"It doesn't really impact me because I know my worth," Antony said. "The money is the money and obviously everyone speaks about it, but no one would if the performances were at the top.
"It's just a way of working harder, knowing I can get better, I know my worth and I will show it. The critics are going to exist, and they make me want to work harder and prove it to myself first.
"I'm going to keep working, giving everything for the group because it's most important to have a good mentality and to be focused."
Saturday's draw officially ended United's hopes of a top-four finish, heightening speculation regarding the future of manager Erik ten Hag.
While Antony accepts United have not been good enough this season, he is hopeful they can end the campaign on a high with another FA Cup final against Manchester City to come.
"It's been a very tough year for me and the team, the results are not ones we expected," Antony added.
"I am someone who takes criticism very well and I want to work on it, and I think we all have to focus on finishing the season the best we can.
"We still have five games and we have to think game by game, get better and go into the final in the best way possible to win it."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
