'He lost it' - Wolves star blasted by ex-Arsenal man for 'ugly' red card that means he will miss West Ham game

Wolves star Matheus Cunha has been criticised by former Arsenal defender Martin Keown for his red card against Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon. The 25-year-old was involved in an altercation with Cherries defender Milos Kerkez.

The Brazilian midfielder lashed out at the Bournemouth left-back and then put his head against his opponent with the scuffle resulting in his sending off as Wolves went on to lose the tie on penalties. Cunha’s sending off occurred in the final minute of extra time and ruled him out of taking part in the shootout.

Cunha blasted by Keown

Former Arsenal defender praised Cunha for his goal in the game and said it was something that belonged at the elite level of the game, however, he was less than impressed with the player’s antics afterwards.

Keown said on Match of the Day: "The ability he has is top level, the goal he scored belongs in the Champions League, but then suddenly we see the ugly. I have not seen that on the football pitch since the 1970s - he just lost it. The referee had to send him off. They couldn't get him out of the ground. This was the ugly part and it is something he has to stop "Wolves need points to stay up. He will be a huge loss."

Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola said of the incident: “The consequences for Cunha is okay, they [Wolves] are out of the cup. “But the consequences, for example, for Milos Kerkez, he has, I think they told me after the game, he has received a yellow card because, I’ve written it down, ‘adopting an aggressive attitude’.

“After what they have done to Milos Kerkez, they should reward him because the attitude he has had. They punch him, they kick him on the floor, they headbutt him and he doesn’t react. You punish this. But I will have to say to Milos, probably as a player, I cannot react as well as he did.”

What games will Cunha miss?

The red card is significant for three Premier League clubs as Wolves star man will now miss his next three fixtures in the competition. Wolves are now out of both domestic cups, meaning his three-game suspension will be served entirely in the Premier League. He is out of games with Everton and Southampton this month and will then miss the visit of West Ham after the March international break.

The two sides met at the beginning of December, with the Hammers emerging victorious from that game. After the full-time whistle in that game, tensions spilled over with players clashing on the London Stadium pitch. Wolves boss at the time stripped Mario Lemina of the captaincy after he clashed with Hammers forward Jarrod Bowen. He proceeded to push his own teammates and square up to then Wolves assistant Shaun Derry.

Wolves are still in the relegation battle but sit in a comfortable position as they are five points above the bottom three. West Ham have all but put any questions over their Premier League status behind them as they sit 16 points above the bottom three after beating Arsenal and Leicester City in their last two games.