David Moyes said he likes his players fighting each other after Idrissa Gueye was sent off for slapping Michael Keane during Everton’s 1-0 victory at Manchester United.
The Everton pair argued with each other in the 13th minute. Keane pushed Gueye away before the latter hit him with an open hand.
Referee Tony Harrington showed the defensive midfielder a straight red card for violent conduct. Moyes later defended Gueye.
He said (per The Guardian): “I like my players fighting each other, if someone didn’t do the right action. If you want that toughness and resilience to get a result, you want someone to act on it.
“If nothing happened [no red card], I don’t think anyone in the stadium would have been surprised. I thought the referee could have taken a bit longer to think about it.
“I was told that by the rules of the game that if you slap your own player, you could be in trouble. I’m disappointed we got the sending off.
“But we’ve all been footballers, we get angry with our teammates. He’s apologised for the sending off – he’s praised the players and thanked them for it and apologised.”
Everton were forced to play for most of the game with ten men against United. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s put them ahead, and they held onto their advantage.
Man Utd chased an equaliser, but they failed to find a way past Everton’s resolute defence, with Jordan Pickford, James Tarkowski and Keane deserving huge credit.
Everton have climbed to 11th in the Premier League table with 18 points from 12 matches. They are above Liverpool in the standings.
They will look to continue their good form when they host Newcastle United on Saturday.
