Netherlands boss Danny Blind has slammed Bruno Martins Indi for his 'needless' red card in tonight's surprise 1-0 Euro 2016 qualifying defeat to Iceland in Eindhoven.
Blind, who replaced axed Guus Hiddink in July, endured a miserable first game in charge of the Oranje as Gylfi Sigurdsson's 51st-minute penalty plunged the hosts' qualification hopes for next summer's tournament into further doubt.
Martins Indi saw red on the 33-minute mark for a strong challenge on Kolbeinn Sigthorsson, and the 54-year-old is at a loss to explain why his defender made such a tackle.
"I have not seen it yet, but I hear from all sides that it is a legitimate red card. I do not know what possessed him," he told reporters.
"It is part of professional football that you control yourself. There was no reason to do it, and at that point we knew it would be very difficult."
The setback leaves Blind's men third in Group A, six points behind Czech Republic and eight adrift of Iceland with three qualifiers remaining.
Shane Callaghan
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