Former Premier League referee Keith Hackett has urged Michael Oliver to check up on the rules of the Premier League after his error during Arsenal’s win over Leicester.
The Gunners came away with a 2-0 victory in the end after a thoroughly impressive performance at the King Power Stadium, but the same cannot be said for the referee.
Jonny Evans tackled Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to the ground just outside the box, and duly received a yellow card for his actions.
That decision has since been scrutinised by the analysts, and one opinion which holds some strong weight is that of former PL official Keith Hackett.
“The DOGSO criteria was fulfilled and Evans should have received a red,” Hackett wrote as quoted in his column at CaughtOffside.
“When I coach referees on the application of this offence, I ask them to visualise the incident and to take away the player who committed the foul in such a scenario.
“Then they should ask themselves if the offended player would have gained possession of the ball and have been able to have a shot on goal.
“Without question in the case of Arsenal’s Aubameyang that would have been the case.
“Oliver should re-visit the law and improve his understanding and application of this law.”
Thankfully, the decision didn’t affect the result, nor did affect the mentality of our players on the pitch and we came away with the all-important three points, but there is no doubt that there would be much more smoke if we hadn’t won. This needs to be analysed however as it could well have had an adverse affect on the result, and consistency is an issue with officials that needs to be rectified.
Patrick