Sean Dyche was left unable to comprehend why Harry Kane went in for an after-the-whistle challenge that ended with Abdoulaye Doucoure seeing red.
The midfielder headed straight down the tunnel after referee David Coote showed no hesitation in brandishing a red card after he pushed Kane in the face. Much of the reaction has concentrated on the theatrics that followed from the England captain.
But Dyche instead chose to raise his confusion over the incident that sparked the main flashpoint of Everton’s 1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur.
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Coote had blown for a Blues free-kick on the halfway line in the build up to the incident. Kane, who had frustrated home players and fans by winning a series of soft free-kicks, had barged over Demarai Gray in front of the technical areas. He then stepped over Gray and met Doucoure in a strong challenge for the loose ball. As both recoiled and with Dyche attempting to intervene, Doucoure pushed Kane in the face and earned a three match ban that comes with the Mali international having become a vital cog in Dyche’s machine.
Speaking after the game, Dyche said he agreed with the red card for Doucoure and the penalty that followed minutes later, when late goalscoring hero Michael Keane brought down Cristian Romero for the spot kick that Kane scored from. But on the Doucoure red, he remained confused as to how the incident had developed from a relatively innocuous situation.
He said: “The penalty is a penalty. They are tough for centre halves because he has only flicked a toe at it. The lad is not going to get the ball, they knock it and they go down. But I'm not quarrelling, that's modern football for you.
"And the sending off, all I will say is that you can't raise your hands. It's as simple as that. I couldn't understand why Harry went for the challenge because the referee had blown the whistle for [the foul on] Dimi Gray.
"So it ends up making a moment out of something that wouldn't have been a moment. But Douc has to respond to that as well and he does raise his hand, so the actual outcome - that's the way it goes, you know you can't do that.”
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