Ipswich Town’s manager, Kieran McKenna, strongly criticized the officiating in his team’s 1-1 draw with Leicester City at Portman Road. Ipswich came close to securing their first win of the season but were denied by a late equalizer from Jordan Ayew in the 94th minute, following a controversial red card that left Ipswich with 10 players.
The game’s decisive moments occurred in the final stages. With about 12 minutes remaining, Ipswich’s Kalvin Phillips was given a second yellow card for a foul on Ricardo Pereira, which McKenna argued put his team at a disadvantage. Shortly before that incident, Ipswich had a penalty appeal waved away when Conor Chaplin was knocked down in the box by Abdul Fatawu, a decision McKenna felt was an obvious mistake.
McKenna argued that these two calls unfairly influenced the result, asserting that Ipswich, the stronger side at full strength, deserved to be leading 2-0. He highlighted that referee Tim Robinson had a clear view of the penalty situation, where Fatawu collided with Chaplin as he prepared to shoot. Regarding Phillips’ red card, McKenna contended it was an overreach, as both players had a fair right to the ball.
Although McKenna said he didn’t want to be seen as the newly-promoted manager complaining about referees, he felt Ipswich had not been given fair treatment, especially regarding the missed penalty and Phillips’ red card.
Meanwhile, Leicester City’s manager, Steve Cooper, who was watching from the press box due to a touchline ban, claimed not to have seen the penalty incident and suggested that Phillips could have been sent off earlier.
