Referee Soto Grado has explained his decision not to send off Cucho Hernández following a heavy collision with Ximo Navarro during the Deportivo La Coruña versus Real Betis Balompié match. The game ended 1-1, with this incident becoming the major talking point from the fixture at Riazor.
The clash happened in the second half. Cucho Hernández went in for a 50-50 challenge and his leg made contact with Ximo Navarro's head, leaving the Deportivo player bleeding on the pitch. The VAR official called Soto Grado over to review the incident at the pitch-side monitor.
After watching the replays, the referee stuck with his original call of only awarding a foul. Soto Grado detailed his reasoning. "Cucho touches the ball and that player puts his head there," the referee said. He added that his immediate thought was, "I'm going to blow for the foul and that's it."
Deportivo coach Antonio Hidalgo disagreed with the officiating decision after the final whistle. The controversy was compounded later in the same match when Ximo Navarro himself was sent off after receiving a second yellow card.
The draw keeps Real Betis Balompié firmly in third place in La Liga, with 16 points from seven games. The Verdiblancos are on an unbeaten run of five matches, a streak that includes impressive wins against teams like Real Madrid.
Betis's next fixture is a home game against 13th-placed Osasuna on October 11th. The team heads into the international break from a strong position in the race for European qualification.
Read the full report at Sport.es
