Radu Dragusin red card sparks reaction from Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou
Tottenham star Radu Dragusin was sent off in the early stages of their Europa League match against Qarabag in north London on Thursday night.
The Romania international was caught napping on the ball as the last man and was resorted to bringing down his opponent.
The referee showed no hesitation as he blew up for a foul, brandishing the red card.
And Dragusin could have no complaints as the last man and had his head in his hands.
Radu Dragusin was sent off in the seventh minute
Reuters
He was not the only one, with Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou fuming on the sidelines and shaking his head in frustration.
He turned away in disbelief, worried that his game-plan was set to be undone in the matter of minutes - though the mood changed not soon after.
The Australian coach is already under pressure after a poor start in the Premier League and needs some success in Europe to stave off questions about his future.
Speaking on Sky Sports, former Premier League striker Clinton Morrison said: "Dragusin should've let him go. He had a long way to go and Vicario to beat.
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"The tactics go out the window for Ange now. Someone has to be sacrificed now. Worst possible start for Spurs.
"I still expect Spurs to win, though."
Postecoglou did slap Dragusin's hand as he trudged off the pitch, indicating his support.And the former Celtic boss was smiling soon after as Tottenham went on to take the lead through Brennan Johnson.
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A nightmare start for Radu Drăgușin 😬
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) September 26, 2024
The Spurs defender is shown a red card inside the opening ten minutes 🟥
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/Sq475Axs7u
A defensive mix-up from Qarabag saw the ball pop up for the Wales international, who brilliantly converted his chance.
The 23-year-old has been in hot form recently and has now scored for a third successive match after strikes against Coventry and Brentford.
The former came in the 92nd minute in the Carabao Cup, sparing Spurs the lottery of penalties after Djed Spence had equalised moments before.
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Ange Postecoglou gave Radu Dragusin a supportive high-five
Reuters
Nevertheless, it was an electric start to Tottenham's Europa League tie - perhaps making up for lost time.
Qarabag turned up 15 minutes before kick-off at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which delayed kick-off by 35 minutes.
Spurs went on to comfortably win on the night, claiming a 3-0 win in north London to alleviate some of the pressure on Postecoglou despite being a man down.
Pape Matar Sarr and Dominic Solanke made sure of the result after the break to get Tottenham off to a winning start in Europe.