Ref Watch: Should Spurs' Cristian Romero and Arsenal's Eddie Nketiah have been sent off in north London derby?
Plus: Luton's dubious penalty award against Wolves for a handball, why Malo Gusto's yellow card was upgraded to a sending off in Chelsea's defeat vs Aston Villa and should Spurs defender Cristian Romero have been sent off for his handball which gave Arsenal a penalty on Sunday?
Tuesday 26 September 2023 06:07, UK
Dermot Gallagher gives his verdict on the flashpoints of the Premier League weekend, including Eddie Nketiah's reckless challenge on Guglielmo Vicario in the north London derby.
Arsenal 2-2 Tottenham
Should Nketiah have been sent off?
INCIDENT: Eddie Nketiah lunges in on Tottenham goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario and catches him. Referee Rob Jones gives Nketiah a yellow card and VAR decides not to add any more to the punishment.
DERMOT'S VERDICT: "Why would you make a challenge like that? I don't think he could win the ball. If he got a red card there, he wouldn't have had any arguments. Luckily, he doesn't catch him full on.
"If he does catch his leg, Nketiah is in big, big trouble. As would the goalkeeper.
"It was checked by the VAR, it was felt that the referee had got the decision right."
Was Romero's handball for Arsenal's penalty the right call?
INCIDENT: Cristian Romero is penalised for handling in the Arsenal penalty area after Ben White's shot hits his arm near the goalline. Rob Jones was sent to the VAR monitor and awarded a penalty, but did not send Romero off.
The incident came after VAR ruled no penalty for a similar handball by Romero during Tottenham's 2-0 win over Manchester United in August.
DERMOT SAYS: CORRECT DECISION
"Does Romero use his arms to balance for what he's going into? Yes. But his arms are out, it strikes his arm. It blocks the shot going in. He might feel hard done by to concede a penalty, but he's lucky because if Bissouma wasn't behind him, he would have also been sent off as it was heading to the goal with no defender.
"His arm is out, VAR has seen it, it's heading towards the goal. It didn't surprise me when I saw the replay."
Should Arsenal have had another penalty?
INCIDENT: Destiny Udogie jumps to clear Reiss Nelson's corner and his arm touches the ball while under pressure from Gabriel. Rob Jones awards a corner and VAR does not spot a handball.
DERMOT SAYS: CORRECT DECISION
"This is one where he is jumping with his arms. He also doesn't really block anything. He would have been really unlucky to concede a penalty there."
Luton 1-1 Wolves
Was the Luton penalty call against Wolves correct?
INCIDENT: Luton are awarded a controversial penalty after Joao Gomes is adjudged to have handled in the area. Carlton Morris scores to make it 1-1.
DERMOT SAYS: CORRECT DECISION
"Difficult decision I think. Normally if it deflects off a player then hits the arm, it goes unpunished. It does that, no doubt about it.
"It deflects off him at speed. But the fact his arm is so high, it's unusually high, means it will be punished. Once the referee gives it and feeds it back to the VAR, it's going to be given. His arm is so high, so he has to give it.
"The referee speaks to the VAR. The first thing the VAR will have said is: 'you've given handball, why?' The referee would have said: 'I'm aware it comes off his thigh, but his arm is so high'. It's all about the proximity of his arm and how high it is.
"You might not like it, I don't like it, but his arm is so high. Once the referee gives it, it will never be overturned.
"On balance, I can see why the referee has given it. It's just so unusual. Handball is no longer easy, they have so many tick boxes to follow. They go through a mental checklist, one of them is: 'have they made their body bigger?' There is no doubt that he has."
Was Bellegarde right to be sent off?
INCIDENT: Wolves midfielder Jean-Ricner Bellegarde is sent off for violent conduct for a challenge on Tom Lockyer. The referee sent him off in real time and VAR agreed with the decision.
DERMOT'S VERDICT: "You can't do that as a player but it's a great learning point for the referee.
"I think it's a red card but hopefully the referee will see that he has to blow the whistle as he walks past and get control of that. He had that in his vision, don't leave two players angry on the floor. The assistant kept his eye on that and told him what Bellegarde did and it was a red card offence."
Man City 2-0 Nottingham Forest
Was Rodri's red card justified?
INCIDENT: Manchester City's Rodri is sent off for holding Morgan Gibbs-White by the neck.
DERMOT'S VERDICT: "Casemiro on Will Hughes was the same thing. He grabbed him by the throat and he was sent off. You ask for consistency and there it is.
"When you put your hands on a player's throat, you run a massive risk. That's what the referee has seen."
Chelsea 0-1 Aston Villa
Was VAR right to upgrade Gusto yellow to a red card?
INCIDENT: Chelsea defender Malo Gusto fouls Aston Villa's Lucas Digne and is awarded a yellow card by Jared Gillet. The official gives a yellow card but VAR recommends it is upgraded to a red. Gillet gives a red card after visiting the monitor.
DERMOT'S VERDICT: "It's a red card, I thought it was when I first saw it. He's jumped in and caught him with his studs.
"One thing you have as a player, you have a duty of care to your opponent. You can't plant your studs on the opponent.
"The time taken to look at it was the referee looking at it, not the VAR. The VAR made the decision very, very quickly."
Sheffield United 0- 8 Newcastle
Should Newcastle's first of eight have been ruled out?
INCIDENT: Anthony Gordon gets the ball on the byline and squares for Sean Longstaff to score Newcastle's opener against Sheffield United.
The Blades players felt Gordon had taken the ball out of play and that he controlled the ball with his hand in the build-up.
DERMOT'S VERDICT: "The whole of the ball has to be over the whole of the line. It obviously isn't. As he brings it over it hits his hand which ironically keeps it in play. It is deemed not deliberate, but he doesn't go on to score. So therefore the new interpretation is that it has to be deliberate for it to be given as handball. The referee and VAR said no so the goal is given."
