Bento becomes the first manager to be shown red card in World Cup

Paulo Bento, the manager of Team Korea, has become the first head coach to be shown a red card in World Cup.

The Portuguese received a red card for complaining to the referee on Monday after his team was defeated by Ghana 2-3 in the second round in Group H. During the 10-minute extra time, Korea made an all-out effort to find the net and earned a corner kick chance in the 11th minute, but the referee whistled the game without giving it a go.

Under the changed rules, a head coach may be given a yellow card for strong complaints or a red for aggressive behaviors. As it happened, the referee who sent off the Portuguese manager was Anthony Tailor, who was notorious for profusely producing red cards in the EPL. Indeed, he gave five red cards in 12 matches in the EPL this season, meaning he produced 0.42 red cards per game, four times the average.

Denied access to his bench, Mr. Bento has no choice but to watch the last group match from the stand. With his contract to be terminated this World Cup, the showdown with Ghana will be the last game he commands on the ground unless Korea manages to advance into the tournament in Qatar.

Korea has made another first in World Cup history of red cards. In the 1998 FIFA World Cup French, Ha Seok-joo made a tackle from behind in the first group match against Mexico, and under the zero-tolerance policy, He became the first player to receive a red card for “a back tackle.” While tackles from behind had been warned with yellow cards, the policy was changed right before the French World Cup to prevent serious injury.


Bo-Mi Im bom@donga.com