European-chasing Bournemouth were held to a stalemate by 10-player Crystal Palace after Chris Richards was controversially sent off at Selhurst Park.
Referee Sam Barrott’s decision to award Palace defender Richards a second yellow card after a tame challenge on Justin Kluivert late in the first half defined what was a disappointing game for both sides in a footballing sense.
Not only was the yellow card soft, but Bournemouth’s Alex Scott had just avoided the same fate following a very similar challenge on Ismaila Sarr when also on a booking.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Clinton Morrison was frustrated with the decisions from referee Sam Barrott at Selhurst Park
“That was a minimal touch from Chris Richards,” said Clinton Morrison on Soccer Special. “The consistency from the referee has to be better.”
Former Premier League referee Mike Dean was in agreement. “For me, he could have just given a free-kick, managed the game, like the way he managed Scott’s one before, because then you’ll upset one team and not the other.
“If you keep them both on the pitch, everybody is happy. For me, he could have managed that better.”
Barrott, who handed out nine bookings at Selhurst Park, then drew the ire of the Palace fans when he chose not to hand Tyler Adams a second yellow for a challenge on Will Hughes, which was no less deserving of a caution.
Bournemouth will see this as a missed opportunity after playing a whole half with a player more. Failure to build on Monday’s win over Fulham opens the door for their European qualification rivals to leapfrog them in the table.
Fulham, who play Chelsea in a west London derby on Sunday, need just a point to go eighth, which will secure passage to the Conference League play-off round, unless Palace are to win the FA Cup.
Perhaps it is a sign of how far Bournemouth have come that on the afternoon they broke their record points tally in a Premier League season, the overwhelming feeling will be one of disappointment.
Palace will be glad to have kept a clean sheet after conceding 10 goals in heavy losses at Man City and Newcastle over the past week, but their failure to register a shot on target in a league game for the first time in more than two years is surely a concern.