There was plenty of drama in the Premier League this weekend, with much of the focus coming after Arsenal beat West Ham United 1-0. However, former PGMOL chief Keith Hackett has called out an ‘unacceptable’ moment during Manchester City 3-0 Brentford.
Before Arsenal were able to re-establish their five-point lead at the top of the table – albeit with a bit of help from VAR – Pep Guardiola’s men narrowed the gap to just two points with a comfortable home win. Goal from Jeremy Doku, Erling Haaland and Omar Marmoush saw City cruise to all three points.
The game wasn’t without drama, though, as Brentford were perhaps unfortunate to be on the wrong side of some tight refereeing decisions.
Three Big VAR Calls Made in Favour of Man City vs Brentford
A total of three notable calls went for Man City on the day, leaving opposing manager Keith Andrews baffled. In the 71st minute, trailing 1-0, Kevin Schade went down under Matheus Nunes’ challenge but referee Michael Salisbury did not give a penalty. City captain Bernardo Silva also got away without punishment when he lashed out at Nathan Collins, hitting him in the leg.
Nunes and Schade were also involved in a major decision in the first half, which looked like a possible last-man red card, but Brentford boss Andrews accepted VAR’s ruling there, noting: “The coaches have said there might have been a bit of contact on the ball. If that’s the case, fair enough.”
He was not forgiving over the penalty incident, though, remarking: “I thought Kevin Schade’s one in the second half was a penalty. So that was really disappointing.”
He later added: “In what world he goes down unless there’s contact is beyond me. Because there’s a goal to get us back to 1-1. That’s the one that I’m struggling to comprehend.
“The comment I heard was ‘not enough contact’. But someone who is as quick as Kevin Schade, with his eyes on goal, I’m not sure how much contact he [the referee] is looking for. Especially with how quick Kev is and the nature of it.”
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The Premier League drama continues.
Rob Jones Slammed Over Pep Guardiola Moment
Naturally, with City getting good luck with the tight calls, attention has been on fourth official Rob Jones. Not helping his cause, he was then pictured with an arm around City boss Guardiola as they exited the pitch down the tunnel.
After the image appeared online, former Premier League referee and PGMOL chief Hackett was quick to criticise the optics of it all. He wrote on social media:
“This is unacceptable from a Premier League Referee. Rob Jones requires some operational advice. Important to be visually seen to be impartial.”