Neil Warnock has slammed England captain Harry Kane for attempting to influence referee Mike Dean as Cardiff’s Joe Ralls was sent off in their 1-0 defeat at Tottenham.
With the winless Bluebirds more than in the game against Wembley, Ralls dealt their chances of getting anything here a decisive blow when he hacked down Lucas Moura and was shown a straight red by Dean, who was surrounded by players from both sides following the challenge.
Replays appeared to show Warnock shouting at the striker, who came back from the summer’s World Cup with the Golden Boot, a ‘t***’ - though when it was put to him the 69-year-old insisted, with a smile, that he would have said ‘twit’.
“Well you don’t go off like that,” Warnock said of Kane’s actions towards Dean. “He is doing that to make an issue of it and get the referee to think it is worse than it is.
“England player, going off like that? Dear me…He went straight in and pushed him, so why not give him a red card.”
When pressed on what he had shouted at Kane, the Cardiff boss added: “Who? The linesman or...there’s about ten of them out there!
“I wouldn’t say that, it would be twit wouldn’t it?
“He doesn’t need to do that,” Warnock continued. “He plays for England, I love him and think he is a tremendous player but I don’t think you should try and get other pros sent off, just because he and Spurs are having a poor game.”
On Ralls’ dismissal, which will lead to a three match ban, he said: “I was disappointed [with the red card] if I’m honest, very soft one to say the least.
In Pictures | Tottenham vs Cardiff City | 06/10/2018
“He said violent conduct, I don’t see it being violent conduct, it was cynical and I think he [Mike Dean] went for his yellow pocket but all afternoon there had been busy people around him [Dean] and he said it was a group decision, you know, wouldn’t surprise me if the experience linesman down that side, Darren...whatever they call him, I think he had a poor afternoon and it wouldn’t surprise me if he didn’t contribute to that.
“He [Dean] got influenced and Mike Dean doesn’t need influencing, he’s a top referee and I think he should have gone with his instinct and given a yellow card.”
