Kyle Walker He said his “heart kicked” when he tried to convince referee Matteo Marchetti to avoid demonstration Dele The red card on his debut Como, but admitted he wouldn’t do it for any other opponent.
The first professional football match of Dele in 748 days lasted only nine minutes Displays a straight red card for an error Ruben loftus-cheekShortly after leaving the bench to create As debut.
He was initially displayed a yellow card, but it was upgraded to red after checking the VAR during a stop time of 2-1 defeat on Walker’s AC Milan.
The couple were teammates Tottenham Hotspur and England And Walker said his “personal relationship” made him try to stop the displayed red card.
“I think my heart kicked. Anyone else, I would just have him sent, especially the man down in San Siro,” right back said on his own BBC podcast. “I know what he tried to do. We all did it where you just bring ankles to someone and get a counterattack.
“But maybe where it has not been played for several years and is out of the rhythm of the game and everything similar, Ruben (Loftus-Cheek) caught a little too high, and that was it.
“Of course I think we need 10 men in terms of football. We want 10 men, AC Milan wants 10 men. But (I appealed) about the personal relationship I have with the Dele, for the years I have known Dele for what he went through.”
Dele joined Como on the 18 -month agreement in January with the possibility of expanding another year. The match against Milan on March 15 has been his first ever since in more than two years. His previous performance came for the Turkish club Besiktas in February 2023.
The midfielder was a member of the English team who achieved the World Cup semifinals in 2018 and was a key player for Spurs Mauricio Pocttino, which achieved the final of the Champions League in 2019.
His career, however, has been derailed in recent years. In the United States in 2023 he spent six weeks in rehabilitation in an effort to solve problems with mental health stemming from traumatic childhood and became dependent on sleeping pills.
Dele did not appear a single look Everton Last season before the contract expired, it expired in June 2024.
At the end of last year, a 28 -year -old man with Como began to train and impressed head coach Cesc Fàbregas to win a contract in the club.
“I know how hard he worked, especially outside the field, and then get his chance now in Como, it’s fantastic,” Walker said. “I think it’s a good club, a good league to try to regenerate and revive his career.”
Information from Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
