Leicester City have this evening received confirmation from The Football Association that defender Sophie Howard’s red card has been rescinded.
The Scotland international was shown a straight red card in the 17th minute of Leicester City’s Vitality Women’s FA Cup fifth round tie against Chelsea on Saturday afternoon.
Howard advanced through the middle of the field with the ball before going in for a challenge with Chelsea’s Jonna Andersson. There was little to separate either player’s role in the incident with their whole-hearted efforts being equal but the match referee produced a shock red card for Howard.
Leicester City appealed the decision and an FA Spokesperson has this evening confirmed that Howard’s red card has been rescinded. The player will therefore now be available to travel to Leigh with the squad for Saturday’s Barclays FA Women’s Super League fixture against Manchester United.
The red card played a significant role in Leicester City exiting this season’s Vitality Women’s FA Cup. At the time that Howard was dismissed, the two sides were tied at 0-0. The Foxes went on to concede a flurry of goals as they lost the game 7-0.
Leicester City have been involved in two controversial refereeing decisions in recent weeks. Forward Jess Sigsworth was adjudged to have been hauled down by Birmingham City’s Emily Ramsey in The Foxes’ 2-1 win at St Andrew’s last month. Ramsey’s dismissal was later chalked off by The Football Association and Leicester City have now faced a similar situation themselves with Howard’s red card at the weekend.
— FA Spokesperson (@FAspokesperson) March 1, 2022
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