Marco Silva questions why Adam Wharton was not sent off as Fulham crash out of FA Cup

Evening Standard

·29. März 2025

Marco Silva questions why Adam Wharton was not sent off as Fulham crash out of FA Cup

The midfielder escaped a second yellow card with the scores still level

Marco Silva believes Adam Wharton should have been sent off during Fulham’s 3-0 FA Cup quarter-final defeat to Crystal Palace.

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The England midfielder was already on a yellow card, for a foul on Willian, when, minutes later, he appeared to kick out at Rodrigo Muniz and then push his elbow into the Brazilian’s back.

Ex-Palace defender Joachim Andersen argued to the referee that Wharton ought to have been sent off, but Darren England had not awarded a foul for the incident.

VAR can only intervene on potential straight red cards so were not able to assess whether the challenge warranted a second booking. Wharton stayed on the pitch as Palace ran out 3-0 winners at Craven Cottage, booking their place in the FA Cup semi-finals.

“If you ask me what my opinion is, of course, it should have been a second yellow card,” Silva said.

“Rodrigo is there, the ball is not there, and if you kick your opposition player, it should be a second yellow card. Of course, VAR can’t overturn. But if you have eight eyes from the fourth officials, they should have seen it.

“It should have had a massive impact on the game. The referees are not seeing them and, unfortunately, we are getting used to this type of situation.”

Silva added: “It’s a frustration for us and our fans. But, in my opinion, it should be a frustration for the fourth officials, because they were not able to see it.”