De Zerbi 'kissed' Bentancur after headbutt red; Neville: 'madness'

📰 Roberto De Zerbi said the red card woke his team up, and embraced the man who was sent off for it. 📌 Key points 🟥 Bentancur was sent off in the 78th minute for a headbutt motion towards Luke Shaw. 💋 De Zerbi said: "I kiss Bentancur in the dressing room." 💪 "Football is character," he added, saying Spurs needed that reaction. ⚽ Ten-man Spurs drew 1-1 through Solanke's stoppage-time header. 🗣️ Neville called it "madness", while Waddle criticised Shaw's reaction. 📝 What happened 🟥 With Spurs trailing 1-0, Bentancur lunged into a tackle on Shaw, who pushed him over. Getting to his feet, Bentancur moved his head into Shaw's face. Referee Stuart Attwell showed a red card, and VAR Jarred Gillett confirmed it as "violent conduct". Both benches became involved, and Shaw was only booked for pushing Bentancur over. 💋 De Zerbi told Sky Sports: "It is a bad way, not the right way, but I kiss Bentancur in the dressing room because we need this type of reaction with character." He added that "football is character" and that "today we showed we are a team for the first time this season". ⚽ Down to ten, Spurs did play with more courage. In the second minute of stoppage time, Solanke, captain for the first time, headed in Sandro Tonali's cross. 🗣️ Opinion was split. Gary Neville called it "madness" and said: "It's just stupidity!" Chris Waddle, though, said Shaw "crossed the line" by holding his head as if he had been headbutted. 📊 By the numbers • Spurs' first six league games: no wins (fourth time in club history) • Bentancur's red: 78th minute (VAR: "violent conduct") • Summer spending: more than £300m 🔭 Why it matters De Zerbi said: "Now I am the coach, and I want to see this character every game." According to TEAMtalk, as relayed by Football365, the Spurs hierarchy is fully behind him with no plans for a change. But praising a red card could stoke debate as Bentancur faces a ban. Spurs host promoted Coventry in their next league game, then travel to Chelsea on 24 October.