Ralph Hasenhuttl
MANAGER Ralph Hasenhuttl revealed how he saw both sides to an argument between him and referee David Coote during Saints’ 0-0 draw with West Ham. The game’s big talking point at St Mary’s came in second-half stoppage time when Irons’ frontman Michail Antonio was sent off for a second booking, following a foul on Moussa Djenepo. Hasenhuttl was left frustrated that referee Coote did not play advantage following the incident, in which the hosts had the chance to counter for the winner. The Austrian boss picked up a booking from man-in-the-middle Coote for his reaction to the decision. Asked post-match whether he felt play should have been allowed to carry on,
Ralph Hasenhuttl said: “At first I said yes. Now I must say, if we lose the ball and he (Antonio) stays on the pitch and he scores a goal – then I sit here and say ‘well why don’t you send him off and stop the game eh?’. There are always two sides you can see. I spoke with the referee. He gave me a yellow card because I was very emotional. Absolutely, okay. In this moment, you think ‘ah this is the chance now to kill them’ and he stopped the game. I can understand his argument, he understands my argument – this is how football should be.”
The stalemate means Saints are still looking for their first league win of the campaign, with three points coming from their opening four games. The south coast side make the trip to Manchester City in the top flight on Saturday.
