PGMOL may have sighed with satisfaction that a significant call that was made during Tottenham’s victory over Liverpool last week did not change the result of Arsenal’s match against Manchester City on Sunday, given the controversy surrounding the choices made by the referees. I am
Had Gabriel Martinelli not scored in the dying moments of Arsenal’s match against Manchester City thanks to a nasty Nathan Ake deflection, Mateo Kovacic would have been the talk of the town.
There was not much action in the game on Sunday, and both managers—who were both without important players—seemed happy with a point. Ederson wasn’t tested before being caught off guard for the winner, and although the hosts were buoyed by Martinelli’s substitution at halftime, City hardly had a chance to equalize after David Raya’s early set piece strike nearly put them up.
Given that Kovacic avoided a red card in the first half, Gooners would have yelled foul even more if the Gunners had not won all three points.
The Croatian midfielder had a few crazy minutes before halftime where he had the chance to get sent off twice.
Kovacic recklessly challenged Martin Odegaard in the first place. The captain of Arsenal, Kovacic, was receiving a pass from William Saliba when he came flying in. The City player caught Odegaard just above the ankle with his studs elevated.
Although Michael Oliver was fast to brandish a yellow card, VAR considered a potential red card because to the nature of the challenge. But Oliver’s on-field decision was upheld because Kovacic’s foul was not considered dangerous enough to overturn it. A “orange card,” which is in between a booking and a red card, was what many people believed the tackle warranted. Oliver’s straight red card for Kovacic would have prevented VAR from getting involved.
Six minutes later, Kovacic again recklessly challenged an Arsenal midfield player, earning the more egregious call. This time, the Croatian international caught Declan Rice late. Co-commentator Gary Neville of Sky Sports ominously cried out, “Oh no,” as Kovavic charged in without grabbing a piece of the ball and caught Rice’s ankle.
Oliver appeared to have committed a foul, so it seemed like a clear card, but the referee chose to disregard Arsenal’s claims that Kovacic ought to have been sent off.
“I think he’s really, really lucky!” He succeeds in obtaining Rice’s right foot. What does he do? Neville commented, “He should be off,” in commentary. The senior Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher expressed the collective conclusion that Kovacic should have been sent off for the combination of his challenges.
The referee’s decision to not give Kovacic his second caution rendered the VAR ineffective, as it was determined that Oliver had not made a clear and apparent error in his judgment of the tackle on Odegaard that resulted in a yellow card.
The technology has only been able to alert the referee to a possible red card when it was introduced into the Premier League. It is not permitted for the VAR to step in and decide whether to issue a second yellow card.
Although Kovacic’s challenge on Rice was tardy and careless, it was in no way warranted a straight red card.
