Idrissa Gueye received a round of applause from his Everton teammates after apologising for being sent off for striking Michael Keane during the 1–0 win over Manchester United.
The midfielder became the first Premier League player in 17 years to be dismissed for hitting a teammate after slapping Keane following a misplaced pass that led to a dangerous chance for Bruno Fernandes. With no chance to speak at half-time, Gueye addressed the squad after the match, apologising directly to Keane and the team for leaving them to play most of the game with 10 men. His apology was warmly received.
Everton could still discipline the 36-year-old under the club’s standard procedures, despite manager David Moyes saying he “likes my players fighting each other”.
Gueye is set to miss three league games through suspension and could also be unavailable if he is called up by Senegal for the Africa Cup of Nations.
He also issued a public apology on social media, taking full responsibility and promising the incident would not happen again.
