Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish has SLAMMED Millwall goalkeeper Liam Roberts for his 'life-endangering' challenge on Jean-Philippe Mateta, who needed to be rushed to hospital.
Roberts was shown a straight red card just eight minutes into Saturday's FA Cup fifth-round tie after rushing outside of his penalty area to clear the ball and following through with a kung-fu kick to Mateta's head. The Palace striker needed seven minutes of treatment on the field at Selhurst Park before being stretchered off and taken to hospital.
Referee Michael Oliver initially didn't show Roberts a red card. Oliver was instructed by VAR to watch replays of the Millwall goalkeeper's wild challenge on the pitch-side monitor before he chose to send him off.
At half-time, a furious Parish gave an interview to BBC Sport's Kelly Somers. The Palace chairman firstly offered an update on Mateta, saying: "So far what we know, he has a bad gash behind his ear and a head injury. He's at the hospital, we hope for the best.
"There's a lot of emotion in football but we need to talk about that challenge. In all the time I've watched football, I've never seen a challenge like it. I looked to see how old the 'keeper was, he's 30 years old.
"That is the most reckless challenge on a football pitch I think I've ever seen, and I think he needs to have a long, hard look at himself, that lad, because he's maybe endangering a fellow professional's life with a challenge like that.
"It's very difficult for me to talk about the rest of the game because we're worried about JP [Mateta]. And it's just a terrible, terrible challenge."
With Eddie Nketiah brought on as his replacement once the game resumed in the 15th minute, Palace responded to Mateta's injury by going 2-0 up through an own goal and a strike from Daniel Munoz. 10-man Millwall pulled a goal back before half-time, as Wes Harding struck.
Parish also hailed his players' reaction to the incident, adding: "They're professionals and they have to treat each other like professionals and have a duty of care for your fellow professionals.
"That 'keeper has not had one [duty of care]. Credit to the players carrying on and it is difficult for me to think about anything else with JP in hospital. In all the time I've watched football, someone mentioned there was one like it in the World Cup in 1982.
"Why the referee needed to go to the screen I've got no idea. He's a human being, forget he's a football player - it is not a normal challenge. We want to progress, but it is difficult for me to look past that challenge."
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