Tiago Santos left Lille’s win over Le Havre on a stretcher, and the consequences of that 15th-minute challenge are likely to stretch well beyond the pitch. The Portuguese defender has suffered a complete rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, while Lille have taken their complaint over Amir Richardson’s unpunished tackle to French football’s authorities.
Lille confirmed on Monday that Santos, 24, had sustained the serious injury during Saturday’s 1-0 Ligue 1 victory over Le Havre. It is a devastating second ACL injury in little over a year for the player, who tore the ligament in his left knee in October 2024.
The club have said they are considering legal proceedings to seek compensation for the damage suffered. Lille have also referred the incident to both the French Football Federation and the Ligue de Football Professionnel after Richardson was not shown a card by the referee.
Officials accept a yellow card was warranted
French refereeing chiefs reviewed the incident in their assessment of the sixth Ligue 1 matchday and concluded that Richardson should have been cautioned.
They nevertheless rejected the idea that the severity of Santos’s injury should itself determine whether the challenge merited a more serious disciplinary punishment.
Their analysis stated that the referee must weigh the force of the challenge, its speed, the nature of the contact and the player’s control of his action. Richardson was judged not to have used excessive speed or brutality.
The Le Havre midfielder’s challenge was still considered reckless under Law 12, making a yellow card appropriate, but it was not deemed to meet the threshold for serious foul play and a direct red card.
Lille had argued that the incident was clear in real time, captured by several cameras and replayed immediately, while VAR was available to intervene in the event of a clear error or a missed potential dismissal. No punishment, including a booking, was issued during the match.
VAR ruling upheld in Paris
The same refereeing review also backed the decision to cancel a second Paris Saint-Germain penalty in their 3-1 win over Le Mans.
Désiré Doué had his initial spot-kick saved by Nicolas Kocik. A further penalty was then awarded after Vitinha was brought down during the aftermath, but VAR intervened and the referee reversed the decision.
The review found that Vitinha had entered the penalty area before Doué struck his kick. His foot was on the line of the penalty arc, placing him inside the restricted zone before the ball had been played.
Players must remain outside the box and behind the arc until the penalty is taken. Vitinha’s early entry became punishable because he then contested the ball after Kocik’s save, making the cancellation of the second penalty correct.
