RICO LEWIS was stunned after being sent off in Manchester City's Club World Cup opener.
The full-back, 20, won the ball before catching Wydad's Samuel Obeng with his follow-through.
The 88th-minute red card did not affect the result, with City winning 2-0.
But nonetheless, many fans found the incident frustrating.
One X user called it: "Absolute insanity."
While a second blasted: "shocking decision."
A third reasonably pointed out: "Never a red, he won the ball cleanly and just happened to follow through, nothing he could do there."
Others, however, disagreed.
One wrote: "Maybe because he lifts his leg and boots him in the face? Not sure tho."
While a second claimed: "It’s a reckless tackle and deserves two red cards for that."
Another added: "He didn’t mean to do that, that's the way, but the game is a game and the rule is a rule. That's a red card, fair play."
City boss Pep Guardiola said of the decision: "Rico has no intention to do that, his feet were on the grass, but it is what it is."
Man City's comfortable win came from first-half goals by Phil Foden and Jeremy Doku.
Guardiola's side will next face Abu Dhabi side Al-Ain.
Lewis will be forced to miss the game via suspension.
