Man United star Lisandro Martinez told he could have ended Cole Palmer's career

Former Premier League referee Keith Hackett has voiced his opinion that Lisandro Martinez's tackle on Cole Palmer could have been career-ending and should be 'outlawed' from the game.

In the dying minutes of Manchester United's 1-1 draw with Chelsea, Martinez scraped his studs down Palmer's leg. The England talent had just showcased a brilliant move to elude Martinez, who retaliated with the rash challenge.

As Chelsea's midfielder hit the deck in agony, Martinez was promptly shown a yellow card by referee Rob Jones. Replays revealed that Martinez's boot made contact with Palmer's knee before sliding down to his lower leg, yet Michael Salisbury, Jones' colleague, did not suggest a VAR review.

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Hackett expressed his disagreement with the on-field decision in his Telegraph column. He wrote: "The landing area of the boot was on Palmer's knee and quite clearly it endangered the player's safety.

"Referee Rob Jones was in a good position to view the incident and decided yellow. He probably concluded that there was insufficient force behind Martinez's challenger to warrant a stronger sanction.

"That, for me, was a clear and obvious error and VAR should have asked the referee to go and review the incident on the pitchside monitor. We have seen a lot of yellow cards this season but the laws, which were penned to protect players by issuing red cards, should be enforced when appropriate."

Continuing, Hackett added that he felt Jones was let down by VAR. "It was the type of tackle that can end a player's career," he said, "the Professional Game Match Officials Ltd (PGMOL) should be more rigorous in enforcing this policy.

"Jones has had his career enhanced this season by taking charge of some big matches and this game at Old Trafford was probably his biggest yet, but he has been let down on this occasion by VAR." Following the match, the Premier League clarified their stance with a statement on X, which read: "The referee issued a yellow card to Martinez for a challenge on Palmer.

"VAR checked for a potential red card and confirmed the referee's call of no red card, deeming that it was a reckless challenge." Post-match, Chelsea's head coach Enzo Maresca didn't hide his annoyance, remarking: "They showed me (a replay) before the press conference, I think it is quite clear for all of us.

"The referee is there to make a decision, he took a different decision. For me, when there is no intention to go for the ball and just the player, is a red."