RED WAS HARSH . . . I HOPE HE DOESN’T MISS UNITED

CRISTIANO RONALDO was very unfortunate to be sent off on his Champions League debut for Juventus.

With the ball on the left wing, the forward tried to make a run into the penalty area and was blocked off by Jeison Murillo.

There was a small push from Ronaldo which resulted in the Valencia defender falling to the floor but that was not violent conduct.

Referee Felix Brych had his back to the incident. It was spotted by the additional assistant, standing behind the goal, who may have thought Ronaldo threw an elbow but that was not the case.

Ronaldo was then clearly annoyed by Murillo’s play-acting and placed a hand on the defender’s head.

The contact looked very slight and I cannot see how the additional assistant, standing some 20 yards away, could deem it violent conduct.

If I had been officiating this game, I would have given Valencia a free-kick and shown a yellow card to each player. Ronaldo will serve a one-match ban but anything more would be harsh.