Everton and Liverpool played out a bad-tempered 2-2 draw on Wednesday that saw as many red cards as there were goals.
In the dying moments of the Merseyside derby, James Tarkowski smashed in an equaliser for the home team at Goodison Park before all hell broke loose after the final whistle.
Referee Michael Oliver sent off Everton’s Abdoulaye Doucoure for celebrating in front of the Liverpool fans before his rival Curtis Jones confronted the midfielder and was also dismissed.
After this, the ref then sent off Liverpool boss Arne Slot and his assistant Sipke Hulshoff who were causing scenes on the pitch after the game.
The FA has now explained why they were all sent off and is, by our reckoning, the first time there have been four sendings off in a single Premier League game.
Here are some of the records over the years of sendings off in matches.
Record number of red cards in one Premier League match
Was the Everton v Liverpool match a record for red cards?
From having researched this, this Merseyside derby saw the highest number of reds seen in one Premier League game, although it’s worth noting that all four sendings off were after the end of the game.
Record number of red cards for one team in a Premier League game
Three teams hold the distinction for receiving the most red cards in one Premier League game. Barnsley had three players sent off against Liverpool in 1998, a feat equalled by West Ham a year later.
Newcastle United have probably the most infamous example, the home side dropping to eight men against Aston Villa in 2005 when Stephen Taylor committed an outrageous handball before his teammates Keiron Dyer and Lee Bowyer fought each other.
Most sendings off in a World Cup match
The so-called Battle of Nuremberg at the 2006 World Cup saw Portugal and the Netherlands each reduced to nine men. Deco and Costinha were sent off for Portugal with the Dutch losing Khalid Boulahrouz and Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
In addition to the four reds, there were 16 yellow cards.
Most sendings off in a football league match
Surprisingly, the infamous Battle of Bramall Lane in 2002, which saw Sheffield United forced to abandon when they only had six players left, is not the record holder. West Brom were awarded a 0-3 victory after the Blades had three players sent off and sustained another two injuries after using all of their substitutes.
It is the only match in English football league history to have been abandoned in such a way.
But, according to the Guardian, there were five sendings off between Chesterfield and Plymouth in 1997 and also that same year between Bristol Rovers and Wigan Athletic.
Most sendings off in one game, ever
It might not be acknowledged by the Guinness Book of Records but surely one match in Argentina will never be topped - with a referee sending off 36 people in 2011.
A mass brawl between Claypole and Victoriano Arenas in the country’s fifth tier saw the referee send off not just all 22 players but also the substitutes and the coaches on both sides.
