A harsh tackle on Brighton’s Kaoru Mitoma caused Mason Holgate to receive the earliest red card in the 2023/24 Premier League.
In the competition at Venue Bramall Lane, Sheffield United midfielder Mason Holgate made a tackle on Kaoru Mitoma in the match against Brighton on the evening of February 18.
That tackle made Brighton fans and players extremely angry. Mason Holgate himself received a yellow card for this tackle. But after consulting VAR, referee Stuart Attwell gave the Sheffield United player a direct red card.
This is the fastest red card this season when it occurred in the 13th minute. This is also the earliest red card since Nathaniel Chalobah in the Fulham match against Newcastle in October 2022.
Talking about Holgate’s harsh tackle, former midfielder Jamie Redknapp said it was the worst tackle he had ever seen and could completely end Mitoma’s career: “It was a very dangerous tackle, a one of the worst tackles I’ve seen in years.
Even in my time, that was a notorious tackle. How Mitoma kept his left leg, I really don’t know. It’s good that he escaped serious injury, otherwise it would have really ended the career of this very impressive player.
I feel sorry for Chris Wilder. He had a plan for the match against Brighton but then his players did the same. I don’t know what Holgate thinks but he made his team pay. They had to chase the ball for the rest of the match and could hardly withstand the opponent’s pressure.”
In the end, Sheffield United lost 0-5 to Brighton. With this result, Brighton is ranked 7th in the Premier League rankings with 38 points, while Sheffield United is ranked 20th with 13 points.