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VAR drives Seagulls boss Potty
VAR was wrong to send off Lewis Dunk against Manchester United last night, according to Brighton boss Graham Potter.
The Seagulls were beaten 2-0 at Old Trafford thanks to goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes — a result which moved United up to fourth in the Premier League.
But Potter, 46, was left raging after visiting skipper Dunk was dismissed shortly after Ronaldo broke the deadlock.
Referee Peter Bankes had only cautioned the defender for bringing down Anthony Elanga on the edge of the area but changed his mind after being advised to check the pitchside monitor.
Potter fumed: “The red card was a yellow card live. Adam Webster was round on the cover, it was not clear and obvious that he could not get there.
“If the referee gave a red card live, I could’ve accepted it more, but I don’t understand why the VAR’s getting involved in a clear and obvious error when it doesn’t look clear and obvious.
“Also, the second goal is a foul on Alexis [Mac Allister] but it is what it is — you don’t get those here. It looked like a push, but we have to accept it.”
Pep wants more
Pep Guardiola reckons his Manchester City side can improve despite dismantling Sporting 5-0 in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.
The Citizens were ruthless in Lisbon, going four goals up before half-time thanks to strikes from Riyad Mahrez, Phil Foden and a Bernardo Silva brace.
Raheem Sterling’s stunning fifth after the break further killed any prospects of a comeback at the Etihad in three weeks’ time.
While Guardiola was pleased with the performance, the Spaniard also believes his side have more to give.
He said: “We saw in the first five, six or seven minutes how dangerous they [Sporting] were. The difference between the sides is not 5-0. But up front we were so clinical.
“The players they know me. They know that we can do better. There were a few players who still didn’t read well what we have to do in terms of build-up. We can do better.
“It is just a game and a fantastic result. We need one more game to be in the quarter-finals. We will now focus on the Premier League.”
Targett caught off guard
Newcastle loanee Matt Targett has revealed that Aston Villa’s capture of Lucas Digne left him with no choice but to move elsewhere in January.
Targett, 26, was a near ever-present for the Villans prior to Digne’s £25million arrival from Everton but quickly found himself dropped for the Frenchman by Steven Gerrard.
Speaking to talkSPORT, the full-back expressed his disappointment at how things developed in the West Midlands.
Targett said: “It was a difficult decision. Last season, I was pretty much the only left-back and I knew the club wanted to sign someone there.
“But I was quite surprised when they signed Lucas Digne. To sign someone of that calibre was quite tough to take.
“That’s where the club want to go and I completely respect that but, at the same time, I’m 26 and I don’t want to be sitting on the bench.
“I want to look back at my career and have played as many Premier League games as possible, which is one of the main reasons I came here.”
