Wolves were comfortably beaten by West Ham United 3-0 today – but there was a moment just before half-time that was highly questionable in the eyes of Roy Keane and Daniel Sturridge.
It is a fourth straight away defeat for Wanderers in the Premier League, and it was such a poor performance down at the London Stadium.
Wolves were all over the place at the back at times, and Mohammed Kudus and Lucas Paqueta were just nightmares, especially in the first-half.
Gary O’Neil certainly has a lot to think about ahead of the next game with Chelsea on Christmas Eve.
But he will go away from today’s game feeling slightly aggrieved about something that happened just before half-time…
Roy Keane says Vladimir Coufal was ‘lucky’ not to be sent off against Wolves
Just before half-time, there was a very strong coming together between Vladimir Coufal and Jean-Ricner Bellegarde.
The ball had gone, and Coufal went clattering into the Frenchman. Replays indicated that Coufal had actually led with his elbow, which struck the face of Bellegarde.
The incident didn’t lead to anything, but pundits Roy Keane and Daniel Sturridge were both shocked at half-time that the challenge went unpunished.
Sturridge said on Sky Sports: “I don’t know if this should be happening on a football pitch. This is WWE stuff. This is rugby stuff. It’s an elbow the jaw.”
Keane added: “The way I look at it, lucky boy. We’ve seen players getting red for that. There’s no need for it.”
Not content with smashing Bellegarde in the first-half, Coufal then clattered him again with just a few minutes left in the game, this time with his shoulder, causing the Wolves man to need some treatment. This challenge earned him a booking.
Red all day
Wolves deserved nothing today, with West Ham comfortably the better side.
But that first challenge from the cowardly Coufal was a disgrace, and the fact the officials did not determine it serious foul play is genuinely incredible.
Wolves fans will not be surprised there was no red card given, because joke decisions like this have been happening for the club all season.
Who knows how a one-man advantage for Wolves might have affected the game in the second-half.