Why it would be ludicrous for FA to ban Richarlison
FOR a start, they are not flares. Everton may be living in fear that Richarlison could receive an FA ban at the worst possible time, for his celebrations during the win over Chelsea, but that would be a ludicrous over-reaction. Richarlison did not throw a flare into the crowd because flares are lit and have heat. They could cause a burn, a genuine injury. Richarlison would have to be daft to pick up a flare with his bare hand. It might as well be a firework. What he threw was a coloured smoke canister. They are popular at football grounds right now and can be purchased on Amazon for a tenner. ‘Ideal for parties, weddings, birthdays,’ it says. One came on when Richarlison scored, so he cheerfully chucked it back. Not a flare; a harmless cylinder emitting blue smoke. It’s still not smart. But one landed near him when Everton scored against Leicester, too, and he just looked at it with a wry smile. This suggests a lesson has been learned. He won’t do it again. And what he did in the first place wasn’t so terrible. It’s a warning, a word; nothing more.