Brian Barry-Murphy launched a tirade towards referees’ treatment of Yousef Salech following the Cardiff City striker’s hospitalisation.
The Bluebirds saw their star forward taken out of the game in the first half of their clash against Stockport County, with play halted for 12 minutes while the Dane recieved treatment on the pitch.
Manager Discusses Treatment
Cardiff found themselves struggling for the remainder of the match to find that killer edge, with Joel Colwill the only scorer in a 1-1 draw, which narrowed the advantage the South Wales club have on second-placed Lincoln City to four points.
Speaking after the game, Brian Barry-Murphy gave an update on Salech’s condition, while also discussing his grievances with the officiating involving the forward. (Quotes via BBC):
“We’ve seen for months that he hasn’t been protected by the referees. Yousef’s in hospital having a scan on his neck as a precaution and we’re just awaiting the results of that.
“It definitely wasn’t nice viewing, but we’re very hopeful [it is not serious]. It’s very difficult when you have such a serious injury to someone who’s so close to all the players.
“It’s been coming for months where he’s been consistently fouled. There’s a lot of talk about what the threshold is this season – the level of contact can be prolonged in more than previous years. It’s got ridiculous.
“He’s clearly been fouled all the time and not got any free-kicks. The interpretation of the new rules is up to the referees, but it’s clear how much you can and can’t get away with and the level of challenges that he’s consistently facing are clearly fouls and not being punished.”
Questions Remain
While it was definitely not Stockport County defender Brad Hills’ intention to injure Yousef Salech, the consequences could have a big impact on the coming weeks of Cardiff City’s season.
It also raises a key question as to the levels of officiating in the EFL, with Bluebirds fans right to point out that this is not a one-off incident and has happened across the season, while County can point to similar incidents involving Kyle Wootton in this game.
Defenders need to be more careful with their heading technique, as outstretched limbs can often it can lead to head injuries, and also officials need to keep a close eye on that action for any potential fouls.
For Cardiff, they now face an anxious wait to see the severity of Salech’s injury, which can have a serious impact on their goalscoring ability going into the next few fixtures, which include home games against playoff-chasing Barnsley and Luton Town.
While Callum Robinson is a strong replacement, it is inarguable how important the 24-year-old has been to Cardiff’s charge towards the League One title and they will be worse off without him.