In the Championship match caught in controversy, Manager John Eustace of Blackburn Rovers disclosed that Owen Beck of his team was noticeably upset after an alleged biting incident by Milutin Osmajic of Preston. Beck was shown a red card in the match’s dying stages for his aggression towards Duane Holmes, but the more contentious episode occurred post the incident as video evidence seemed to display Osmajic gnawing on the back of the neck of Blackburn’s left back.
With regard to the incidence, Eustace remarked that Beck attempted to clear the ball and ended up antagonising the fellow player, resulting in a severe bite mark on his neck. He opined it to be unfortunate that the referee missed the episode. Beck, feeling dejected due to his sending off, was also bothered by the wound on his neck, leading to a significant silence and shaken demeanour.
Paul Heckingbottom, who manages Osmajic, concurred that there is no room for such actions in football. He justified mistimed tackles as a commonplace in the sport and expected such issues that aren’t part of the game to be appropriately addressed.
The match saw another sending off as Sam Greenwood of Preston delivered a careless double-footed tackle on Lewis Baker in the 42nd minute, flooring him instantly. Eustace, however, showed compassion for the player on loan from Leeds, acknowledging the intensity that often accompanies local derbies.
Heckingbottom conceded to the referee’s decision but stressed the need for maintaining uniformity in ruling what forms a red card offence. The North End boss was satisfied with his team’s performance, admitting that Greenwood’s sending off potentially piled on the difficulties for their rivals.
He conceded, “Despite our control over the ball in the first half, we failed to exploit opportunities or penetrate their defences sufficiently, and we didn’t generate any decisive chances based on the possession we held.”
In the second half, our game control switched dynamics. We managed the game without having possession of the ball, which possibly unsettled Blackburn – the current top counter-attacking team in the league,” he stated.
Eustace candidly acknowledged this fact, expressing his frustration at the team’s inability to mould more opportunities. “With the opposition reduced to 10 men, we fell short in generating enough on the attacking front. This is an area we need to improve on. Nevertheless, we did have the upper hand with the prime opportunity of the match,” he expressed.
He added, “We tactically shut them out in the first half, giving them no opportunity other than the last-minute header, that was deflected effectively by [Aynsley Pears]. Such local thrashings often set the usual form and quality to the side.”