STEVE PARISH has claimed Liam Roberts ENDANGERED Jean-Philippe Mateta’s life with his horror challenge.
In-form Crystal Palace hitman Mateta was rushed to the hospital after being on the receiving end of a horror tackle from the Millwall keeper in the first half of the tasty FA Cup fifth-round tie.
Liam Roberts crashed into Jean-Philippe Mateta in Millwall’s FA Cup clash with Crystal Palace[/caption]
The Millwall stopper got the ball, but his left boot followed through and felled Mateta[/caption]
The tackle drew blood and resulted in Mateta being transported to the hospital[/caption]
Palace owner Steve Parish went on an extraordinary mid-match rant about the challenge[/caption]
Roberts booted the striker in the head as he recklessly cleared the ball with a kung-fu kick of a challenge, which eventually earned him a red card.
Parish couldn’t quite believe his eyes and voiced his frustrations during a mid-match interview with the BBC.
He said: “So far what we know is he’s got a bad gash behind his ear and a head injury. He’s at the hospital so we hope for the best.
“There’s a lot of emotion in football but we need to talk about that challenge.
“In all the time I’ve watched football, I’ve never seen a challenge like it.
“I looked to see how old the keeper is, he’s 30 years old.
“That is the most reckless challenge on a football pitch I think I’ve ever seen and he needs to have a long, hard look at himself that lad.
“Because he’s endangering a fellow professional, maybe even his life, with a challenge like that.”
Steve Parish mimicked Liam Roberts’ tackle in the stands[/caption]
Parish couldn’t quite believe that referee Michael Oliver needed to review the incident before giving Roberts his marching orders.
He continued: “It’s very difficult for me to talk about the rest of the game because we’re worried about JP in hospital. It’s just a terrible, terrible challenge.
“That goalkeeper hasn’t shown a duty of care to another professional.
“Someone mentioned there was one in the 1982 World Cup like it.
“But it’s a dreadful challenge and why the referee needs to go the screen, I’ve no idea.
“Forget about him being a football player, he is a human being. That is not a normal challenge.
“If you’re kicking someone in the head with the full force, God knows what damage has been done to him.”
Palace raced into a 2-0 lead in seven first-half minutes thanks to an own goal from Japhet Tanganga and a strike from Daniel Munoz.
But ten-man Millwall reduced the arrears in first-half stoppage time through Wes Harding.
Jean-Philippe Mateta was rushed to hospital after being treated on the pitch[/caption]
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