Holland legend Marco van Basten has defended Pascal Struijk’s tackle on Harvey Elliott in Leeds’ 3-0 loss on Sunday.
Speaking as a pundit on Ziggo Sport via De Telegraaf, the three-time Ballon d’Or winner believed that the incident that stole the headlines at Elland Road was nothing more than an accident.
Elliott was left with a dislocated ankle Struijk’s mistimed a rash challenge on the 18-year-old Liverpool star. The Dutch youngster saw red for his tackle on the teenager. However, according to the Yorkshire Post, Leeds are unlikely to appeal the decision.
The incident has since sparked mass debate on whether the tackle on Elliott in isolation deserved a red card. And according to Van Basted, the decision from the referee to send Struijk off was the wrong one.
The former AC Milan attacker said: “You can clearly see that this is an accident. Why does he get a red card?”
As per the Daily Mail, Elliott will now miss six months of football due to Struijk’s tackle. A similar incident happened in the 2019/20 season when Heung-min Son severely injured Andre Gomes with a rash challenge that was similar to the Leeds defender.
With the Whites winless in the Premier League after four games, losing Struijk will be a big blow to Marcelo Bielsa’s side with the defender out for the next three games.
Leeds will be hoping they can finally secure a win when they face off against Newcastle United and West Ham in the coming weeks.
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