Sammy Lee is too streetwise to believe that management is easy but he did not make the most auspicious of starts last night to his first full season in charge of Bolton Wanderers. Nicky Hunt, the right back, was sent off in the 1-1 draw against Seongnam Ilhwa in the Peace Cup tournament here and could miss the start of the Barclays Premier League campaign because of suspension.
Hunt was dismissed by Simon Przydacz, the Australian referee, in the 54th minute for a rash challenge from behind on Itamar, Seongnam’s Brazilian striker. He was shown a straight red card and if the Korean FA reports the incident to its English counterpart, Hunt may have to sit out fixtures against Newcastle United, Fulham and Portsmouth next month.
Lee, who replaced Sam Allardyce as manager for Bolton’s closing two matches of last season, will ask Przydacz to review the incident today. While Hunt’s challenge appeared reckless, Lee believes that he did not “stomp” on Itamar.
“I’ve been to see the referee,” Lee said. “He said that the red card was for a stomp. I haven’t seen it yet but if he sees it again and it isn’t a stomp, then we’ll have to find out the rules and regulations of the tournament. When the referee sees the video evidence, he may change his mind. If the decision stands, then we face losing Nicky when the Premiership starts.”
Wayne Rooney missed three of Manchester United’s first four league games last season after he was sent off for violent conduct in the 3-1 victory over FC Porto in the preseason Amsterdam tournament.
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The Dutch FA informed the English FA of the dismissal and although Rooney lodged an appeal, it was rejected. Paul Scholes, sent off in the same game for two yellow cards, also served a three-game ban.
Lee fielded an understrength side in a new-look 4-4-2 formation that produced a pugnacious display. However, apart from Hunt’s woes, Lee also lost Stelios Giannakopoulos shortly before kick-off with a calf injury and Ricardo Gardner in the second half with a hamstring strain.
Kevin Nolan gave ten-man Bolton the lead in the 78th minute, making amends for two glaring misses, but Nam Gi Il equalised with three minutes left in front of a 48,000 crowd at the Seoul World Cup Stadium. Bolton’s next group A match is against Chivas Guadalajara, of Mexico, who defeated Racing Santander 5-0 last night, in Daegu tomorrow.
Reading will hope to ease the often tense Anglo-Argentine relations of the past when they take on River Plate in group B in Suwon this evening. As they trained yesterday in the heat and humidity that had replaced the torrential rain of the previous day, the talk was more about reconciliation than reopening old wounds.
“This heat. It’s a nightmare,” Dave Kitson, the Reading striker, said. “I’ve watched River Plate on late-night tele-vision back home and what an opportunity it is for us. Sure, the South American players do have a certain reputation. But it is called the Peace Cup and I’ll remind them of that.”
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James Harper, the Reading midfield player, offered a more tongue-in-cheek take on the issue. “The game is not about national pride or anything like that,” he said. “If we were playing the Germans, that would be different. We always want to thump them.”