Brennan Johnson was shown a red card in Tottenham’s Champions League clash with Copenhagen after the VAR sent on-field referee Erik Lambrechts to the pitch-side monitor.
UEFA’s explanation for the decision read: “Tottenham’s player No22, using his studs, made a strong unfair contact with the opponent’s left ankle which clearly endangered the safety of his opponent.”
The Wales international had, originally, been shown a yellow card for his challenge. Johnson reached for the ball, but his follow-through saw his studs scrape down the Copenhagen player’s calf.
The 24-year-old had scored Tottenham’s opening goal of the evening. Johnson skipped the ball past goalkeeper Dominik Kotarski and then, from a tight angle, put the ball in the back of the net. Johnson’s red card means the Welshman will miss Tottenham’s next Champions League match; although the suspension will not be carried over to the Premier League.
Spurs were 2-0 up when Johnson was sent off. However, a few minutes after that red card was shown, goals from Micky van de Ven and Joao Palhinha had taken the score to 4-0.
Palhinha’s strike was briefly checked for offside by VAR, but the Portugal international – who had only been on the pitch for six minutes – was shown to be onside.
Tonight’s performance at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium looks to be exactly what the home fans would have wanted following a dismal display against Chelsea on the weekend that saw the players get booed off the field.
Thomas Frank’s side are unbeaten in their opening four Champions League fixtures. They travel to France next to face the current trophy holders PSG.
Heading into their clash against Copenhagen, Frank’s squad announcement revealed the absence of Mohammed Kudus, who suffered a knock in Tottenham’s match against Chelsea.
Djed Spence was also reportedly dealing with a slight knock. Despite that, the England defender did feature, being brought on for the final 17 minutes.
Tottenham will look to take the momentum from tonight into their fiery clash with Manchester United on Saturday.
A win against Ruben Amorim’s side could see Spurs leapfrog the table up to second, one place behind their fiercest rivals and early-season Premier League table-toppers Arsenal.
Learn more
Tottenham Hotspur continue their UEFA Champions League campaign as they host FC Copenhagen on November 4. Fans can watch the game on the TNT Sports Prime Video channel.
