“To his credit…” - Leeds United fan pundit weighs in on Patrick Bamford fallout following QPR win | OneFootball

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This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Leeds United beat QPR 1-0 on Wednesday night to move back into the top six, although there was a controversial moment in the game as Asmir Begovic was harshly sent off late on.

Asmir Begovic sent off for challenge on Patrick Bamford

The R’s keeper was dismissed in stoppage time, for supposedly taking the Whites striker out with what would have been a high challenge, whilst he was also the last man.

However, the former Chelsea keeper was furious when the decision was made, and replays proved there was no contact on Bamford.

With the Leeds man having history when it comes to deceiving a match official, having been hit with a two-game suspension in the past, he came in for fierce criticism on social media from QPR fans.

Yet, speaking to FLW, Leeds fan pundit Kris explained that whilst the red card should be overturned, Bamford made it clear immediately that he wasn’t trying to get Begovic sent off.

“In real time, watching from the South Stand, it did seem off that Begovic had any complaints whatsoever for a reckless challenge, knowing he was the last man and out of the box when he slid in.

“When the footage showed there was no contact, you can see why he’s irate with the officials, he’s got every right to be annoyed, and you would expect that ban is overturned pretty quickly, so he’s available for the weekend.

“As for Bamford’s ‘dive’, you can see that he’s trying to get out of the way of the challenge, because it looks like Begovic is going to clatter him at knee height. But, then again, it doesn’t look good for him that he’s gone down under no contact.

“To his credit, he got up, and he wasn’t pretending as if he was halved by Begovic, and he admitted there was no contact to Gareth Ainsworth post match. Hopefully, that sort of honesty might be what saves him from a retrospective ban from the FA, because you’d be expecting that they’re looking at this.”

Will Patrick Bamford receive a ban for deceiving an official?

We know the rules allow the EFL to hand out a two-game suspension if the referee awards a penalty or sends off a player due to an opponent deceiving them.

Clearly, Bamford was not touched, and he did go down, which contributed to the incorrect red card, so they do have grounds to give him a ban.

But, as Kris says, Bamford did get up quickly, and he did appear to gesture that there was no contact at the time, which he confirmed after. So, it will be interesting to see what happens, and both outcomes could be justified, but his past dive is not likely to help when it comes to his reputation.

The main thing is that Begovic wins his appeal, which should be a formality, meaning he can play for QPR against Blackburn on Saturday, in what is a huge game for Ainsworth’s side as they look to climb out of the relegation zone.