This move helps Leeds return to the top 6 but may not come without a price. The Whites received a late boost in their win over QPR, when Patrick Bamford went down after fouling goalkeeper Asmir Begovic. Footage showed there was no contact from Begovic but Bamford stood up and appealed to the referee for a free kick, and Begovic was sent off.
The match was almost over at that point, due to the incident in the 93rd minute, but it still held a lot of meaning. The FA will likely overturn the red card, but they can also impose disciplinary action against Bamford.
The FA’s regulations, under the fifth scope of the disciplinary section, state that players can be charged with “misconduct contrary to rule E3.1 (misconduct)” in the event of “wrongdoing involves the successful deception of a match official by This is a clearly simulated action that results in the award of a penalty or the disqualification of an opposing player.
Such incidents will be promptly addressed when reviewed and this incident clearly fell within those guidelines, as Begovic was sent off. The standard ban is two matches. Speaking after the match, QPR coach Gareth Ainsworth said:
“I checked both players, there was no contact at all. Patrick is a great kid, he came out to block it and the referee thought he caught him. Hopefully we can overturn the decision, we will have to speak to the authorities at QPR to see if we can appeal the decision. I’m so sorry for Asmir, he’s been great for me this season.
Meanwhile, Tim Sherwood said on Sky Sports News:
“I don’t think there was any [contact]. When I watched the replay, Patrick was probably a little embarrassed. He goes down. When you first see him, it looks like Asmir caught him when Patrick fell.
“Jimmy Dunne finished from behind. Toe. When you look at it from a different angle. You see the gap. He didn’t touch it and it fell down. Red card. They will definitely appeal and get away with it.
