Idrissa Gueye shown red card in 13th minute
Everton midfielder slapped teammate Michael Keane at Old Trafford
Incident drew parallels to 2005 fight between Newcastle players Lee Bowyer and Kieran Dyer
In a bizarre turn of events, Everton's Idrissa Gueye was given marching orders by referee Tony Harrington after only 13 minutes in their English Premier League 2025-26 encounter with Manchester United on Tuesday (November 25 as per India time). Gueye hit teammate Michael Keane in the face at Old Trafford.
The referee caught the midfielder slapping Keane after an unsuccessful Bruno Fernandes attempt at the Everton goal. The duo got into a war of words and Gueye then got violent, prompting the referee to hand him a straight red card.
The players and spectators were taken aback by the incident, which happened out of the blue. Though it was a poor pass from Gueye to Keane that led to Fernandes' shot on goal, it was not clear what specifically provoked Gueye to slap Keane. Either way, hitting your own teammate is always an unsavoury sight.
Gueye had to be held back by Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford and fellow midfielder Iliman Ndiaye as he tried to continue his scuffle with Keane. The Premier League match centre eventually posted on X: "The referee’s call of red card to Gueye for violent conduct was checked and confirmed by VAR – with the action deemed to be a clear strike to the face of Keane."
You can watch the video of the extraordinary altercation below:
Though rare, it is not the first time teammates have got violent on the pitch. The incident soon drew parallels to the infamous one in 2005, when Newcastle United players Lee Bowyer and Kieran Dyer were involved in a physical fight during a Premier League clash with Aston Villa. Both players were sent off in that game.
As for the current match at Old Trafford, despite the setback, it was Everton who led 1-0 at half-time. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall came up with a corker of a goal, unfurling a sizzling shot after dodging a couple of United defenders to put the visitors in the lead in the 29th minute, despite the numerical disadvantage.
