Wigan Athletic and Sunderland bosses argue over 'red card' and 'slow tactics'

Latics had led 1-0 at the break thanks to Charlie Wyke's goal seconds before the half-time whistle at the Stadium of Light.

Wyke had previously been on the receiving end of a lunging challenge from Embleton that left the Latics man in a heap.

Referee Keith Stroud, however, opted only to brandish a yellow card, and Embleton took full advantage and equalising nine minutes after the restart.

Dennis Cirkin went on to grab a deserved winner for Sunderland with 18 minutes to go, but both managers had their say in the post-match press conference.

Unsurprisingly, Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray defended his player, and even refenced another yellow-card challenge - Curtis Tilt on Patrick Roberts - to make his point.

"They were both poor decisions, really," said Mowbray. "It was wet, it was pouring down, the pitch was soaking wet.

"Both players (Embleton and Wyke) slid for the ball, whoever got there first was getting it and the other lad was probably going to get caught.

"Embleton just poked it and the slide followed through. In my opinion, play on.

"Then a few minutes later, he booked another lad (Tilt) for a slide tackle.

"I'm from a certain era where you could tackle. It seems you can't go to ground on a wet day if two players collide in a challenge.

"So, for me, it shouldn't have even been a booking.

"I don't know if people are saying it should have been more. I wasn't worried it would be a red."

Richardson, on the other hand, felt Latics had been very hard done by.

"The challenge didn't look great," said Richardson.

"It possibly might have been a different outcome if it had been the opposite way round.

"But I'm not going to look for excuses."

Mowbray also hit out at Latics’ tactics during the game.

“Wigan came to slow it down, break up the play, go down, stay down,” he said. “I don’t know why the referee books our goalie with five minutes to go, he should have been booking their players early on.

"Their goalkeeper even went down with cramp...how does a goalkeeper get cramp?

When told about the comments, Richardson retorted; "I don't remember our lads going down and staying down.

"I remember their lads managing the game well in the closing stages.

"And I remember their goalkeeper getting booked for time wasting.”

Richardson also hailed goalscorer Wyke, who was making his first return to Wearside since suffering a cardiac arrest last November.

"I have to be very complimentary to Sunderland, I thought they were very complimentary around the time Charlie had his episode,” he added.

"And I thought in the main, 99 per cent of the people in the ground were very supportive of him again this afternoon.

"For him to have got the goal here, I know it's a club that he holds dear, it's great.

"And if I'm going to take one positive from today, I'll take that one."