Chris Cohen and Tom Shaw face another defensive reshuffle after Deji Elerewe was sent off in Lincoln City’s 2-2 draw at Millwall.
City had led through Andrei Coubis and Rob Street, but goals from Kyrell Lisbie and Jake Cooper brought the hosts level before Elerewe’s dismissal in the 84th minute.
The defender came together with Zak Lovelace as the forward tried to get through, appearing to shrug him off, with George Wickens looking likely to reach the ball. The referee produced a straight red, with the assistant appearing to play a part in the decision, leaving City short-handed just two minutes after the equaliser. It was the Imps’ third sending-off of the week, following the dismissals of Tom Hamer and Conor McGrandles against West Ham.
Cohen was asked about both the challenge itself and the apparent involvement of the assistant in the decision.
“We know Deji’s physical attributes and the way he plays the game,” said Chris.
“How often do we see him do that throughout the course of games? He uses his physicality, uses his speed to just body people and get them in, and it’s never really given.
“It felt like it was just one of the things that Deji normally does. Between the linesman and the referee, they decided to give it. We can’t control that.”
Millwall wasted the resulting free kick, but City still had to reorganise for the closing stages against opponents who had recovered from two goals behind. Cohen also reflected on how the players handled that final spell and the work required from the touchline.
“What we can control is making sure we try to help the team in terms of giving them a structure to see the game out. I thought in that last 10 minutes, under really difficult circumstances, they did that very well.
“From our side, it didn’t look like it, but I haven’t seen it back yet, so we’ll have to wait and see.”
Elerewe is now set to miss next Saturday’s home game against Burnley, alongside Hamer, who remains suspended following his dismissal against West Ham. McGrandles will be available again after serving his suspension at Millwall, giving Chris and Tom an option back in midfield.
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