Leeds United manager Daniel Farke gave a detailed and candid account of the moment he was sent to the stands, insisting that all he had done was jog onto the pitch to ask the referee a straightforward question.
Farke explained that he wanted to understand why a yellow card had been shown in a particular situation without any additional seconds being added to the clock. He never got the chance to finish the question. By the time he reached the referee, the red card was already in his hand. No words were exchanged, no eye contact was made, and the dismissal was shown without any attempt at communication.
Farke acknowledged he was not thrilled about the time-keeping decision, but insisted that asking a question is a perfectly reasonable thing to do. What angered him more than the red card itself was the manner in which it was shown, which he felt was designed to publicly humiliate him and signal to everyone watching that he was not worth engaging with.
Even so, he was clear that he had not used a single disrespectful word or made any accusations. He pointed to the reaction of the assistant referee as supporting evidence, noting that the assistant had appeared genuinely taken aback by the dismissal and had attempted to speak with Farke rather than immediately defend his colleague.
With a touch of self-awareness, Farke admitted that he is not the most elegant mover and that his jogging style probably does not project innocence. Nevertheless, his position was firm: jogging onto a pitch should not result in a red card.
He was careful to frame his frustration as being about the specific moment rather than the referee as a person, describing Peter Bankes as a highly experienced official who he believed had simply misjudged the situation rather than acted with any deliberate intent. His hope was that when they next crossed paths, there would be room for a conversation and, regardless of any disagreement, a handshake.
When asked whether he expected to be available for the match against Sunderland, Farke was straightforward: in his view, the red card should not be allowed to stand.