NafisaLeeds United manager Daniel Farke has voiced his frustration following a controversial three-match ban handed to his first choice centre-back Junior Firpo after an off-the-ball incident in Wednesday’s 1-0 defeat to Millwall in skybet championship match.
The ban, which was confirmed on Saturday morning, follows an altercation involving Firpo in the final moments of the match, which largely went unnoticed during the game.
The incident occurred in stoppage time as the ball went out for a goal kick. Firpo was adjudged to have thrown his head at Millwall’s Shaun McNamara, who dramatically fell to the ground causing a review after the final whistle.
Although referee Leigh Doughty did not see the incident, McNamara made a formal complaint after the game, which prompted a disciplinary panel to review the footage of the incident.
The penalty was a three-match suspension for Firpo, starting with the clash against Queens Park Rangers, which Leeds won 2-0 without their first choice left-back.
Farke began his post-match comments by acknowledging Firpo’s indiscipline but quickly shifted his focus to a broader critique of the decision-making process surrounding the ban of the 28-year-old Spanish left back.
“It came as a shock for us, no one was aware, I’ve not noticed anything during the game,” Farke said. “I’ve watched it back, and the first thing I want to say is Junior has to behave better, and we accept the ban.
I was not happy with his behaviour because it was an emotional game, it was in added time, we are in a losing position, and it was his opponent McNamara who went after him. But he should have just gone away and not been provoked.”
Farke, known for his honesty and straightforward speaking, emphasised the need for more maturity from the 28-year-old, who had only recently returned from a suspension due to accumulating five yellow cards in the league so far.
“For a player of his experience and calibre, Junior has to behave in a better, more experienced, more mature way. I’m not happy at all with it. That’s the first thing I want to say.”
However, Farke’s anger was not solely directed at Firpo. The German tactician took aim at the use of controversial reviews in football, particularly the decision to investigate Firpo’s actions after the fact the final whistle is blown.
“The first thing is we don’t use VAR (video assistant referees) to make the decisions better for obvious mistakes like disallowed goals, red cards, offsides, probably to save some money,” Farke said, expressing his frustration with the lack of consistency in how incidents are reviewed in the League.
“But then we use the TV pictures to find something out that no one has realised during the game and to investigate if someone has behaved in a difficult way, and we pay a panel to make decisions and investigate this. I’m struggling with this.”
Farke’s complaints were traced back to what he saw as an imbalance in the way incidents are handled by the officials.
He compared this situation with one that occurred the previous season, where Leeds were denied a clear penalty against Rotherham, despite a blatant foul on Willy Gnonto in the box of the opposition team.
“Last season we had a game at Rotherham and there was a clear straight tackle in the opponents’ box and normally a clear penalty for us.
Everyone in the stadium realised this. All my players were claiming it, every TV pundit picked up on it, every guy on social media picked up on it, the whole bench, the whole staff were claiming for a red card.
A few days later we received a letter from the FA saying sorry, it should have been a straight red card and a penalty, they apologised.”
He continued: “In this case, Willy Gnonto had a bloody knee after the tackle and a bruise on the knee and more or less everyone watching the game was saying something had happened to the player.
It was not reported by the referee. Why is it not reported last season when everyone realises and there is an injury, and this time around no one realises and there is not even an injury but one player reports inappropriate behaviour after the game, and he (the referee) writes it down.”
Farke’s concerns were not only about the lack of consistency in refereeing but also about what he saw as the weakness of traditional football values.
“I played in a generation where we tried everything during the 90 minutes to be competitive, and sometimes there were borderline duels and tough games.
Sometimes you tried to provoke things, and if something goes in your favour during the 90 minutes you cheer about it, but I was used after the game, that whatever happened during the games you shake hands, give each other a hug, and that’s it.”
He took issue with McNamara’s decision to report Firpo’s actions after the game, especially in the absence of any physical injury. “Sorry, it would not be possible when I was a player after I won a game and there were feisty, nasty duels and provocation on both sides that I report to a referee as a player like McNamara has done that there is violent behaviour when there’s not even an injury. I have my problems with this behaviour, I have to say.”
Farke also expressed concern over the broader implications of such decisions on the development of young players.
“For me, after the final whistle you shake hands, you say we gave it to each other in the proper way, everything’s okay, but not to speak about a colleague doing something wrong, especially when there is no injury and nothing to see.
We haven’t done this after fouls against Willy Gnonto when he has blood over all his knee and a big bruise. I think you shouldn’t do this.”
The Leeds boss also questioned the message being sent to young players. “And what I’m really also struggling with is if we then say this player will be rewarded by booking or suspending the other player because we set up a panel, you’ve done really well, well done. I think it’s not great how we educate our players.”
Turning back to the game itself, Farke offered a more positive assessment. Despite a performance that wasn’t at their best, Leeds secured a vital 2-0 win over bottom-of-the-table QPR.
The win came on the back of a disappointing defeat at Millwall, and Farke was pleased with how his side responded under pressure. “I’m just happy with a win and I have to give many compliments to my lads. The load at the moment is incredible, especially with many key players still out or suspended.”
The win, Farke said, was all the more impressive given the busy schedule. “It was the third in seven days for both sides.
Leeds dominated the game but it took until the fifth added minute for Joel Piroe to double the lead after Jayden Bogle had opened the scoring in the 19th minute.
“I’m very happy with the performance, very happy with the win, very happy with the clean sheet, the three points,” Farke said. “It could have been even a bit easier in terms of goal difference, but I don’t need to criticise this today. Just compliment the team.”
Nafisa
