Mistakes made by on field and video assistant referees have risen in the Premier League this season
Malick Thiaw was brought down by Reece James(Image: X)
Newcastle United have been told they should have been awarded a penalty in their Premier League clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge earlier this month. Eddie Howe’s side defeated the Blues 1-0 on the road on March, 14, but could have led by a greater margin.
It’s another VAR error that has affected the Magpies in the top flight this season, and according to the BBC, mistakes have increased.
As per the latest Premier League Key Match Incidents (KMI) panel, another four errors were made by referees in their latest report, taking the total to 54 this season.
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The panel felt Newcastle should have been awarded a penalty when Malick Thiaw was pulled back by Chelsea defender Reece James, though nothing was given.
The incident was discussed on Sky Sports Ref Watch, with former top flight official and Jay Bothroyd shocked that no penalty was awarded.
Gallagher said: “If you are not looking at the ball, you are taking a massive risk – there is no way he can ever say, ‘I am trying to look at the ball.’ He is not trying to fend off a defender, he does not know where the ball is and the ball is the clue.
Bothroyd later added: “It is crazy – he is holding him and taking about four or five steps, and he is holding him the whole way and not looking at the ball, he does not even know where the ball is going. So I am really surprised that has not been given as a penalty….”
Malick Thiaw of Newcastle United(Image: Newcastle United via Getty Images)
Fortunately for the Toon, the incident would not come back to haunt them in the game, though goal difference could play a part in the race for European football.
With 54 errors so far this season, there are ten more incidents compared to last season, which were wrong or missed VAR interventions, or on-field mistakes which were not reviewed.
The report says the Professional Game Match Officials (PGMO) point to the general trend being a positive one, with 70 mistakes made after 30 games during the 2023-24 campaign.
Nevertheless, there has already been 18 VAR errors this season, which is the same as the entirety of the last campaign, with a quarter of the season left.
That figure is considerably lower than the overall total for 2022-23 (38) and 2023-34 (31). Incorrect VAR reviews have fallen from four to three, but there has been a rise in missed VAR interventions (15), on-field errors (25) and incorrect second yellow card decisions (11).
VAR interventions have fallen from 89 to 83, with the PGMO claiming this indicates “better on-field decision making to the intended high bar.”
It also says that delays for VAR have improved by 25 per cent over the last three seasons, with stoppages falling from 64 seconds in 2023-24 to around 48 seconds this season – including stadium announcements.
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